Doctors in Colombia are trying to determine how an 11-month-old baby is already the weight of an average eight-year-old.

The child's mother, Milena Orosco de Agudelo, said her son's unusual growth spurt¹ began when he was just two months old.

He has had several medical examinations carried out which suggest he may have a problem with his endocrine system.

Miss Orosco de Agudelo said: "He had some tests done and the results show that he has a thyroid malfunction².

"Then, he had a cardiogram test done and that test shows that he has the bones of an eight-year-old boy, but they have not told me where that came from."

Doctor David Dias, of the Barranquilla Pediatric Hospital, said more examinations need to be carried out to discover why the child has become so large.

He said: "The baby will have tests done to see if he's obese³ or we're dealing⁴ with hyperthyroidism."

Hypothyroidism is often a result of an autoimmune condition known as Hashimoto's thyroiditis, in which the body's own immune cells attack and destroy the thyroid gland⁵. Symptoms include fatigue⁶ and weight gain.

The normal weight for an 11-month-old boy is around one stone.

Because of his size, the boy's mother says he cannot fit into his older brother's hand-me-down clothes and is limited to wearing extra large nappies.

 

哥伦比亚一个11个月大的婴儿的体重已达到八岁儿童的水平，目前当地医生正试图寻找其中的原因。

这个婴儿的母亲米勒娜•奥罗可•奥古德洛说，她儿子两个月大时体重便开始飙升。

目前，这名“巨婴”已接受了几项医学检测，检查结果显示他的内分泌系统可能有些问题。

奥古德洛说：“医生给他做了几项检查，结果发现他的甲状腺功能异常。”

“之后做的心电图检测表明，他的骨骼发育已经达到了八岁儿童的水平，但现在还不知道这是由什么引起的。”

巴兰基利亚儿童医院的大卫•迪亚兹医生说，还需要进行进一步检查才能确定该婴儿体重暴涨的原因。

他说：“这名婴儿还需要接受多项检查以确定他究竟是单纯性的肥胖，还是患上了甲状腺机能亢进。”

“甲状腺功能亢进”通常是由一种名叫“桥本甲状腺炎”的自体免疫性疾病引起的，这种疾病会导致患者的自身免疫细胞攻击并毁坏甲状腺，患者的症状通常表现为疲劳和体重增加。

一个11月大男婴的正常体重大约为14磅。

据米勒娜介绍，由于儿子的体型实在太大，所以他根本穿不上哥哥小时候的旧衣服，而且必须得用“超大”号尿布。