years earlier. she had never done pre-natal follow-up. in the third trimester, she felt strong cramps in the lower abdomen at the same time that fetal activity disappeared. she had not looked for medical assistance and some weeks later she eliminated a dark red mass through the vagina with a placental appearance. she had experienced the characteristic modifications of breast lactation. the abdomen had started to decrease but retained an infra-umbilical mass of about 20 centimeters in diameter, mobile and painless." zahra aboutalib (75) grand casablanca, morocco 1955 2001 (46 years) probably the most documented case. heavily pregnant, aboutalib went through labor pains for 48 hours at her home before being taken to a hospital, where she was scheduled for a cesarean section. however, after witnessing another young woman dying during the procedure she feared for her life and fled the hospital. the pain ceased days later and did not return for 46 years, when the still unidentified lithopedion was initially mistaken for an ovarian tumor. aboutalib never bore children again after her ectopic pregnancy, but adopted three. unknown (80) south africa 1960 2001 (c. 40 years) an 80-year-old woman presented in the outpatient department with severe abdominal pain. ultrasound examination revealed a large echogenic mass (20 x 20 cm) in the right upper quadrant. an abdominal x-ray demonstrated the skeleton of a fully developed extrauterine fetus. it is presumed from the patient's history that this fetus was present for at least 40 years. radiography revealed a fetus shrouded in a mantle of calcification. the fetus was hyper-flexed with other signs of "intrauterine" death. fetal dentition charts dated the fetus at 34 weeks, the epiphyses being obscured by extensive calcification. in addition to subcutaneous calcification there was extensive visceral and intracranial calcification. unknown (63) daegu, south korea 1961 2001 (40 years) postterm abdominal pregnancy extended beyond nine months, after which fetal movement ceased and the mother suffered from vaginal bleeding, but never gave birth. the patient became pregnant again and gave birth to a healthy baby girl two years later. unknown (33) ghana 1990 2002 (12 years) third pregnancy after two natural miscarriages. patient experienced abdominal pain, bilateral tubal blockage and infertility. unknown (40) burla, odisha, india 1999 2007 (8 years) only known case of twin lithopedia. one embryo grew in each ovary until both died 5 months into development; the patient assumed she had suffered a normal natural miscarriage. she had pain in both sides of the lower abdomen through the following 8 years, when it was joined by abdominal distention, vomiting and intestinal constipation. unknown (31) curaren, francisco morazán, honduras 1995 2008 (13 years) the ectopic pregnancy happened shortly after the birth of the patient's first child. afterwards she was pregnant seven times more, giving birth to her last child just two months before the diagnosis. unknown (68) northern cape, south africa 1986 2011; not extracted (25 years) fourth pregnancy, when the patient was aged 44. resulted in infertility, which was taken for a case of early menopause, but was otherwise asymptomatic. unknown (37) malongo, democratic republic of the congo 2009 2011 (3 years) patient went through the same experience as in her previous eight pregnancies, but "the baby never came out". surgeons retrieved a calcified 32 weeks fetus from the abdominal cavity; the ovaries and uterus were intact and the patient had her period regularly. unknown (32) santa clara, waspam, nicaragua 2010 2011 (35 weeks) patient in her third pregnancy. was hospitalized because she did not feel fetal movement anymore. antamma (70) mominpur, west bengal, india 1977 2012 (35 years) admitted to hospital after complaining of stomach pain for some time. the patient had delivered three healthy children after this incomplete pregnancy. huang yijun (92) people's republic of china 1948 2013 (65 years) longest known case. the patient was informed that the fetus had died inside her in 1948, but she did not remove it earlier because she lacked the money. unknown(82) bogota, colombia 1973 2013; not extracted (40 years) patient originally thought to be suffering from gastroenteritis but an abdominal radiography discovered a calcified fetus in her abdomen. unknown(70) tamil nadu, india 1962 2014; not extracted (52 years) patient presented with history of purulent discharge per vagina. treated as purulent inflammation of cervix after biopsy report. subsequently, condition resolved followed by history of pain and breathlessness. on radiography, it was found that the patient had a lithopedion fetus in her abdomen. she was asymptomatic through her reproductive life. joaquina costa leite(84) natividade, tocantins state, brazil 1970 2014; not extracted (44 years) patient was having abdominal pain, when doctors discovered the fetus. she claimed to have been pregnant more than 40 years prior. after extreme pain back then, she saw a local traditional healer who gave her medication that ended the pain, and – she had assumed – miscarried the baby. estela meléndez(90) san antonio, chile 1965 2015; not extracted(50 years) a 2 kg (4.4 lb) calcified fetus was discovered in the abdomen of a 90-year-old chilean woman. the discovery was made during an x-ray examination after the lady was brought to the hospital following a fall. the lithopedion, which is believed to have been there for 50 years, was so large and developed, it occupied the whole abdominal cavity. the fetus was not removed on the grounds of the patient's age. kantabai thakre(60) nagpur, india 1978 2015 (37 years) thakre was warned that her pregnancy was ectopic and would not be successful, but she was afraid of surgery and returned home, where she took remedies to alleviate the pain only. the pains disappeared a few months later, but they returned after 37 years. fearing cancer, thakre sought hospital treatment, was diagnosed and had the fetus remains extracted. hawa adan(31) mandera, kenya 2007 2020 (13 years) adan, a 31-year-old ethiopian woman, unsuccessfully sought medical treatment in her native country for an abdominal swelling. subsequently, she moved to mandera county referral hospital in northern kenya where a ct scan diagnosed her with lithopedion. doctors at the hospital successfully operated on her to remove the male infant stone baby.