How Do You Get Pregnant With No Vagina?
2/26/202626 min
It's 1988 in Lesotho, and doctors at a hospital see something they thought was impossible. A 15-year-old girl shows up pregnant and in labor, but she's missing something pretty crucial to her delivery: a vagina. So — how did this happen?? We go on a roller-coaster ride through the reproductive system with Dr. Neel Shah to find out. Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/sciencevsnovagina In this episode, we cover: (00:00) A small war (04:12) How do you get pregnant without a vagina? (14:37) The final unbelievable chapter This episode was produced by Ekedi Fausther-Keeys with help from Wendy Zukerman, Michelle Dang, Rose Rimler, and Meryl Horn. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Diane Kelly. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Emma Munger, So Wiley, Peter Leonard, Bumi Hidaka and Bobby Lord. Thank you to all the scientists we spoke to for this episode including, Dr. Sarah Ackroyd, Dr. Sarah Collins, Professor Adam Taylor, and Dr. Cathy Flood. Special thanks to Joseph Lavelle Wilson and the Zukerman family. Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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First 90 secondsWendy Zukerman· Host0:00
Hi, I'm Wendy Zukerman, and you're listening to Science Versus. [upbeat music] Today on the show, a new segment that we're calling Case Files, and this is where we take case reports, which are basically stories from academic literature, where really weird things have happened to patients that are often so out of the norm that doctors have to write them down for posterity. So think about the kid who went to the hospital with a case of blue balls. Classic case report. But today, we have a case report for you that could perhaps top all case reports. And to process it all, we've got friend of the show and science journalist Joel Werner. Hello, Joel.
Joel Werner· Guest0:47
Hey, Wendy.
Wendy Zukerman· Host0:48
Ooh, boy, boy, boy!
Joel Werner· Guest0:50
[chuckles] The case report to top all case reports- Mm ... like you're coming in hot. [chuckles] Let's do it.
Wendy Zukerman· Host0:55
Let's do it. Okay, this story was published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1988. [chuckles] It begins with a lovers' quarrel and ends with what might be one of the unlikeliest events in scientific history, but it's so unlikely that we're wondering if perhaps it is indeed a fairy tale with some nightmarish elements. One doctor told us it reads like Jerry Springer. Quote, "You don't see much in medicine that's published in this way."
Joel Werner· Guest1:28
[chuckles] Wow, that