Doctors in Somaliland remove a 3-year-old calcified fetus — Live Science

In Somaliland, doctors operated on a 42-year-old woman and removed a calcified mass containing fetal remains from her pelvis, which had formed after an ectopic pregnancy. The condition, known as lithopedion or a “stone baby,” was detected after the patient had complained for three years of dull lower abdominal pain and a feeling of heaviness that had intensified in recent months, Live Science reports.

Examination revealed a fetal skeleton

While taking her medical history, the woman said that about three years before seeking care, she had experienced pregnancy-like symptoms: her abdomen had enlarged and she had felt fetal movements. Later, these movements stopped, the abdominal enlargement ceased and gradually decreased. She did not seek medical care at the time.

Doctors found a hard, irregular mass that extended to the navel and was almost immobile during palpation. Tests showed mild anemia, while the white blood cell count and liver and kidney function test results were normal, and the pregnancy test was negative. An ultrasound examination revealed a calcified mass and an empty uterus.

A CT scan with three-dimensional imaging showed fetal skeletal structures within the mass: the skull, spine, ribs, as well as arm and leg bones. The mass measured about 18 by 13 centimeters.

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Surgery and recovery

According to the medical team, this was likely a primary abdominal pregnancy — a type of ectopic pregnancy in which the embryo implants in the abdominal cavity. If the fetus dies at a stage when the body cannot break down and absorb its tissues, calcium can gradually accumulate around the remains.

During abdominal surgery, surgeons completely removed the calcified mass. The following day, the patient developed a mild fever and nausea, which resolved after treatment. Follow-up examinations over six months showed healing and the complete disappearance of abdominal pain.

Medical literature has described about 340 cases of lithopedion over the past 400 years; the earliest dates back to 1582. In many cases, the condition was diagnosed only in postmenopausal women who had been unaware of calcified fetal remains for years.