Dwarfism Adam Rainer was born in
Graz,
Austria-Hungary (present day
Austria), on 22 February 1899. As a child, Rainer was described as very small, thin, and weak. In 1917, at age 18, he was measured at . He therefore was refused entry into the
Austro-Hungarian Army to take part in
World War I. A typical defining characteristic of
dwarfism is an adult height below .
Gigantism Several years later, likely as a result of a
pituitary tumor that was identified later, Rainer had a dramatic growth spurt. Between his early 20s to early 30s, he gained height at the average rate of 9.14 cm (3.16 in) per year. He went from US
shoe size 10 (EUR size 43) at age 19 to size 20 (EUR 57.5) only three years later. Two doctors examined Rainer in detail between August 1930 and May 1931, at which time his height was . A benign
pituitary adenoma was found, which was responsible for the enormous growth.
Dr. Oskar Hirsch removed the adenoma. ==References==