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Teen Without Vaginal Opening Becomes Pregnant, 1988 Case Sparks Frenzy With Medical Explanation
Teen Without Vaginal Opening Becomes Pregnant, 1988 Case Sparks Frenzy With Medical Explanation
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Teen Without Vaginal Opening Becomes Pregnant, 1988 Case Sparks Frenzy With Medical Explanation

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In an extraordinary medical case from 1988 in Lesotho, South Africa, a 15-year-old girl who had no vaginal opening shocked doctors after tests revealed she was nine months pregnant.

The unsuspecting teen was rushed to the hospital, complaining of severe abdominal pain, only to discover she was on the brink of childbirth. 

RELATED:

    A teen with no vaginal opening was rushed to the hospital—nine months pregnant

    Pregnant teen in gray shirt pondering, highlighting medical mystery case.

    Image credits: stock.adobe (not the actual photo)

    Highlights
    • A study revealed that a teenage girl without a vaginal opening became pregnant in a miraculous conception.
    • A hypothesis claims that the girl may have gotten pregnant after oral intimacy.
    • Women sometimes experience cryptic pregnancies, where they aren't aware of the pregnancy until birth.

    Aside from the shock of her unexpected pregnancy, doctors discovered that the girl suffered from a rare condition known as distal vaginal atresia, which leaves the individual without a vaginal opening. 

    The extraordinary medical case, first documented in the British Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, challenges the conventional understanding of human biology. 

    The young patient successfully gave birth to a healthy baby

    Sperm approaching an egg, representing conception in a medical context.

    Image credits: stock.adobe (not the actual photo)

    This medical rarity, affecting just one in 10,000 to 15,000 newborn girls, results from a failure in the development of the vaginal canal. Despite this extraordinary birth defect, the young patient successfully delivered her baby.

    Doctors and medical experts remain baffled, wondering how conception occurred without a vaginal opening and in the absence of in-vitro fertilization methods. 

    Despite noticing changes in her body, the girl never thought about pregnancy

    Patient in hospital gown receiving medical care, relating to teen pregnancy case and medical explanation.

    Image credits: stock.adobe (not the actual photo)

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    The girl reported that, despite noticing changes in her body throughout the nine months she was pregnant, she had never considered the possibility of pregnancy due to her lack of a vaginal opening and penetrative intercourse. 

    The young woman, who was born without a vaginal opening, however, had previously preferred oral intimacy after multiple unsuccessful attempts at conventional intercourse.  

    Oral intimacy is believed to have caused the pregnancy

    Pregnant teen in yellow dress lying on grass, highlighting unique medical case from 1988.

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    Image credits: stock.adobe (not the actual photo)

    Some doctors believed that the strange nature of her conception may have come to light after hearing a traumatic incident that took place nine months before her delivery. The young girl explained that after an orally intimate encounter, she was attacked by her enraged ex-boyfriend, who stabbed her in the abdomen multiple times after catching her in the act with her then-partner. 

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    Medical professionals tried to piece together the puzzle. According to Dr. Douwe Verkuyl’s hypothesis, the sperm she ingested might have traveled through her wounds to her reproductive organs, which ultimately led to the miraculous pregnancy. 

    The sperm stayed viable until reaching the uterus

    Two women smiling indoors with a map background, related to a medical case.

    Image credits: itv

    Dr. Douwe Verkuyl’s hypothesis also suggests that while this conception method would be out of the question in a healthy individual, her being malnourished at the time might have possibly prevented the acidity in her stomach from killing the sperm.

    So consequently, the hypothesis claims that the sperm stayed viable until reaching the uterus. To everyone’s surprise, the girl gave birth to a healthy 6.2-pound baby boy through a C-section nine months later.

    The story from 1988 resurfaced after similar recent events took place

    Mother and teen with baby carrier, related to 1988 pregnancy case about being pregnant without vaginal opening.

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    Image credits: itv

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    Teen with baby carrier on beach at night, city lights in background, related to medical case from 1988.

    Image credits: itv

    In one such incident, an English teenager vacationing in Turkey for her 18th birthday was rushed to the hospital only to give birth to a surprise baby girl in December 2024. Iona Miller, alongside her mom, Sarah Richardson, spoke to ITV Calendar News, revealing the shocking birth. The young mother was unaware of her pregnancy, attributing her only symptom, persistent back pain, to a rugby injury. 

    The unexpected discovery came when severe stomach pains, initially suspected to be appendicitis, turned out to be labor contractions. “Iona said, ‘Mum, there’s something between my legs,’ so I pulled the covers up and the baby’s head was there,” Sarah said. Iona was so confused about the situation that she asked her mom, “Whose baby is that?” when she saw her daughter for the first time.

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    A 24-year-old had a baby after her “cryptic pregnancy”

    A woman with a baby and a man sitting on a couch, discussing a 1988 pregnancy case and its medical explanation.

    Image credits: This Morning

    Young woman smiling while holding a newborn, standing near festive decorations and a balloon.

    Image credits: This Morning

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    More recently, a woman left the audience speechless on a This Morning show’s episode, which aired in January 2025. Kayleigh, a childcare worker from England, explained that she only felt sick once after a night out drinking a few weeks before her baby’s birth. However, on Christmas Day in 2024, she and her partner rushed to the hospital after she experienced severe pain, only to give birth after finding out that she had a “cryptic pregnancy.”

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    Cryptic pregnancy is a medical condition where a pregnant woman doesn’t know that she is pregnant. It is also known as stealth pregnancy or denied pregnancy.

    Kayleigh said that since she didn’t know she was pregnant, she spent her pregnancy having adventures around the world. She shared, “I went to Magaluf in July, I worked it out, I must have been three months pregnant when I went to Magaluf.

    “I went to Amsterdam, we went to Turkey, I had girls’ weekends as well,” she added. 

    Online users rushed to the comments over the controversial hypothesis about the pregnancy

    Comment from a user expressing disbelief after reading about a pregnancy case without vaginal opening.

    Ellen Tyma's comment dismissing a viral 1988 medical case as implausible.

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    Comment text saying, "Um life finds a way," related to a medical explanation incident.

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    Comment on teen's unexpected pregnancy sparks frenzy.

    Nathan Wakefield text message about teen pregnancy case with humorous emoji.

    Comment by John Caleb Collins discussing violence and assault related to 1988 medical case.

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    Comment about a 1988 case sparking interest with medical explanation, highlighting its complexity and conception.

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    Social media comment referencing a 1988 medical case related to pregnancy.

    Comment questioning teen pregnancy without vaginal opening, 1988 medical case.

    Comment questioning medical conclusion about a 1988 pregnancy case involving a teenager without a vaginal opening.

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    Irmak Bayrakdar

    Irmak Bayrakdar

    Author, Community member

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    Hey there! I'm Irmak, and I cover the news here at Bored Panda. When I'm not in front of the screen, I'm probably out exploring the city's hot spots, diving into fine art, chatting about the latest in cinema, indulging in plant-based bites, or my personal favorite, chilling with my perfect dog.

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    Irmak Bayrakdar

    Irmak Bayrakdar

    Author, Community member

    Hey there! I'm Irmak, and I cover the news here at Bored Panda. When I'm not in front of the screen, I'm probably out exploring the city's hot spots, diving into fine art, chatting about the latest in cinema, indulging in plant-based bites, or my personal favorite, chilling with my perfect dog.

    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Author, Community member

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    Hey there! I'm a Visual Editor in News team. My responsibility is to ensure that you can read the story not just through text, but also through photos. I get to work with a variety of topics ranging from celebrity drama to mind-blowing Nasa cosmic news. And let me tell you, that's what makes this job an absolute blast! Outside of work, you can find me sweating it out in dance classes or unleashing my creativity by drawing and creating digital paintings of different characters that lives in my head. I also love spending time outdoors and play board games with my friends.

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    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Donata Leskauskaitė

    Author, Community member

    Hey there! I'm a Visual Editor in News team. My responsibility is to ensure that you can read the story not just through text, but also through photos. I get to work with a variety of topics ranging from celebrity drama to mind-blowing Nasa cosmic news. And let me tell you, that's what makes this job an absolute blast! Outside of work, you can find me sweating it out in dance classes or unleashing my creativity by drawing and creating digital paintings of different characters that lives in my head. I also love spending time outdoors and play board games with my friends.

    What do you think ?
    RedMarbles
    Community Member
    9 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Snopes looked into it and found the case report in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. FWIW, the author of the case report sounds legit, according to Snopes. It may have been made possible in part because her stomach was empty at the time of the stabbing, so the sperm may have been able to survive long enough under the circumstances to still be viable at the time she was stabbed in the abdomen. The baby was delivered via C-section 278 days after the stabbing, which is an appropriate length of time if conception occurred then. The other two stories don't sound like anything as unusual as a woman with no vaginal opening getting pregnant.

    Load More Replies...
    Tamra
    Community Member
    9 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    How did she expel period blood without a vaginal opening?

    Ben
    Community Member
    9 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    What did I just read? None of this made sense.

    Load More Comments
    RedMarbles
    Community Member
    9 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Snopes looked into it and found the case report in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. FWIW, the author of the case report sounds legit, according to Snopes. It may have been made possible in part because her stomach was empty at the time of the stabbing, so the sperm may have been able to survive long enough under the circumstances to still be viable at the time she was stabbed in the abdomen. The baby was delivered via C-section 278 days after the stabbing, which is an appropriate length of time if conception occurred then. The other two stories don't sound like anything as unusual as a woman with no vaginal opening getting pregnant.

    Load More Replies...
    Tamra
    Community Member
    9 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    How did she expel period blood without a vaginal opening?

    Ben
    Community Member
    9 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    What did I just read? None of this made sense.

    Load More Comments
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