(Photo : Photo courtesy of Bentley family)

Rose Marie Bentley, hailing from Oregon, left this world at the amazing age of 99, without being in the least aware of her exceptional anatomy. For almost a century, she lived a mundane life with her family, in small-town Molalla, Oregon.

A Unique Anatomy

According to the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), she had a condition termed situs inversus with levocardia. This happens when the stomach, liver, as also other organs of the abdomen are reversed from the right side of her body to the left, although the heart remained on the left of her chest. In fact, medical professors and students alike were surprised and baffled by this unusual condition.

This rarest of the rare conditions happen only 1 in 22,000 births. What is more inconceivable is the fact that Bentley lived to be almost a centenarian, at a time when people who suffer from this syndrome are susceptible to fatal cardiac problems along with others. Even more remarkable was how she lived to be nearly 100 years old when situs inversus with levocardia is often linked to life-threatening cardiac issues and other aberrations. According to Dr.Cam Walker of the OHSU, only one out of 50 million persons who have this particular condition live to reach adulthood.

Extraordinary Anatomy with No Problems

In the face of these distinctive characteristics of Bentley's anatomy, she lived comparatively free of problems like chronic conditions, except for arthritis. Although she had some of her organs surgically removed, she recuperated well and the surgeon who operated on her happened to notice her peculiarly placed organs.

Other unique features of her anatomy include an abnormality known as hiatal hernia and an unusually extended superior vena cava. Apart from these, her three veins in the liver by draining straight into her heart's right atrium rather than going via her inferior vena cava. All these special features make her anatomy anomalous in a wonderful way, instead of being harmful.

Students Richer by the New Knowledge

All students who worked with Bentley at OHSU found it amazing. By studying her rare anatomical characteristics they could learn normal anatomy and at the same time discover, the variations in anatomy as found in her. The students were amazed at how she could live for so long without any complications. They were also happy that the new knowledge enabled them to be ready for such variations in human anatomy if and when they happened to come across them again.