Lina lived a normal life until the unlikely news of her young pregnancy thrust her into the limelight. She became pregnant at the young age of five. In April 1939, Lina’s mother took her to the famous Dr Gerardo Lozada in Pisco, Peru, after noticing her daughter’s protruding tummy.
When Lina’s abdomen began growing at age five and she complained of stomach pains, doctors thought she had a large tumor. But tests revealed that she was actually seven months pregnant.
The Peruvian child delivered a 5-pound, 8-ounce boy via caesarean section; her small pelvis made it impossible for the baby to pass through the birth canal. In a detailed report of the case, Dr. Edmundo Escomel described the girl’s early sexual maturity. Lina had her first menstrual cycle when she was only eight months old; her breasts were almost completely developed by the time she was four.
The Doctors at the maternity knew that there was a high chance for the baby to have major difficulties as Lina’s young organism was thought at the time to be undeveloped, therefore not able to offer the baby the nutrition required when developing during the 9 months of pregnancy. With a miracle, the baby was born healthy at a perfect weight of 2.7 kilograms and coincidentally on mother’s day 14th of May, 1939.
The child was named Gerardo Medina, a name inspired by Lina’s doctor who helped her through labor. The father’s identity still remains a mystery even to this day. What is sure is that Lina was another innocent young victim of sexual abuse. What is more horrifying is that this is still happening to this day.
The child’s Paternity remains a mystery. Lina’s father was arrested on suspicion of rape and incest but the charges were later dropped for lack of evidence. Lina, who is still living, has never divulged a name and, indeed, may not know.
Unfortunately, her son Gerardo later died at the age of 40 from a bone marrow disease.
Medina’s condition certainly came as a surprise to everybody who studied the case, but among pediatric endocrinologists, it wasn’t entirely unthinkable.
About one in every 10,000 children develops a condition known as precocious puberty and Medina was one of those kids.
