A baby boy who was born weighing just 9.7oz, or 275g, is set to lead a normal and healthy life, it has been reported.
The boy, who was born at 25 weeks old in Gottingen Hospital, in Germany, last June, has been called a medical miracle.
He weighed less than a can of Coke at birth but doctors are now confident he is strong enough to survive.
A spokesperson for the hospital told the Guardian that doctors now believed the boy would lead a normal, healthy life.
He said: "The danger has passed. He was most vulnerable when his organs were underdeveloped. Now he is the weight of a normal baby and healthy in every way."
The baby, who was nicknamed Tom Thumb by doctors, was born 15 weeks early by caesarean section due to concerns that his life was at risk.
He spent six months in intensive care hooked up to feeding tubes, breathing tubes, a heart monitor, catheter and machines to monitor his vital signs 24 hours a day.
The boy finally reached a weight of 3.7kg in December, considered to be a more normal birth weight in Germany.
He was then allowed to go home to Eighsfeld in central Germany with his parents.
Stefan Weller, a spokesman for University hospital Göttingen, told the Guardian: "After studying all the relevant documents we can say with certainty that he was the smallest child in the world to survive such a premature birth last year."
Only 47 survive at 25 weeks, according to research carried out in the UK in 2008.
Dr Stephan Seeliger, an expert on premature babies, told the Guardian: "I spoke to the parents about the birth beforehand – whether we will do it or not. In the end I said: 'Good that we did it!'"
Three baby girls have been lighter and survived – one weighing only 244g.
Source: The Guardian