Surgeons have been astonished by the medical rarity of a 26-year-old man trapped in the body of a two-year-old toddler.

Jerly Lyngdoh - who lives with his farmer parents in Meghalaya, northern India - looks like any other tot with his tiny head and delicate 2ft 9ins long body.

But it's only when he opens his mouth to reveal a full set of adult teeth that the truth about the world's oldest baby is revealed.

Experts believe glands which secrete growth hormones may be damaged in the 22 lbs medical miracle.

'Jerly's infantile features are remarkable, and the only thing he shares with an adult are his teeth,' said paediatrician Dr J. Ryndong.

'We think this is a case of pan-hypo pituitarism leading to poor secretion of growth hormones from the pituitary gland. He is a genuine rarity,' he added.

Jerly - who is still dressed in baby clothes by his parents - measures up at just four inches taller than China's He Pingping, officially the world's smallest man.