What causes a stone baby?

This phenomenon is called a lithopedion, otherwise known as a stone baby. First described back in the 10th century, the calcification usually occurs when an abdominal pregnancy — one that occurs outside the womb, somewhere inside the mother’s abdomen — goes awry.

How common is a stone baby?

The Sens baby is one of the earliest extensively documented cases of a lithopedion—a never-born “stone baby” that calcifies over time. It’s a very rare condition: There are only 300 or so known cases, going back to prehistory.

How does lithopedion occur?

Lithopedion describes an intraabdominal calcified dead fetus. A lithopedion can result from a primary abdominal pregnancy, or from a secondary abdominal implantation following tubal abortion or rupture of tubal or intrauterine pregnancy.

How common is lithopedion?

In the modern era of medicine, the occurrence of a lithopedion is extremely rare. Since the earliest case was discovered in 1582 in France, less than 300 cases of lithopedion have been reported.

What happens if a baby dies in the womb?

When a baby dies while still in the womb, this may also be called fetal loss. A doctor may deliver the baby by giving you medicine to start labour. Or you may have a surgical procedure called D&E (dilation and evacuation). The loss of a baby is devastating and very hard to accept.

What does a stone baby refer to?

A lithopedion (also spelled lithopaedion; from Ancient Greek: λίθος “stone” and Ancient Greek: παιδίον “small child, infant”), or stone baby, is a rare phenomenon which occurs most commonly when a fetus dies during an abdominal pregnancy, is too large to be reabsorbed by the body, and calcifies on the outside as part …

What is the longest a baby has been in the womb?

375 days
But other doctors at Los Angeles’ Methodist Hospital found it incredible that Mrs. Hunter had been pregnant 375 days (instead of the normal 280) before her baby was born there last week; 375 days would be the longest pregnancy on record, topping the runner-up by about 58 days. The evidence as presented by Dr.

Can you be born pregnant?

A baby born in Hong Kong was pregnant with her own siblings at the time of her birth, according to a new report of the infant’s case. The baby’s condition, known as fetus-in-fetu, is incredibly rare, occurring in only about 1 in every 500,000 births.