In a remarkable medical achievement, a 61-year-old woman from Skopje has given birth to a healthy baby boy after 37 years of unsuccessful attempts to conceive. This extraordinary news was announced on Tuesday by Dr. Irena Aleksioska Papestjev, Director of the Clinic for Gynecology and Obstetrics (GAK) in Skopje.
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| A newborn baby in an incubator in Skopje as a midwife rubs his leg |
"In the world of medicine, there are no longer boundaries, and North Macedonian healthcare can be compared to the global standards. This patient is the first to become pregnant using her own frozen egg, which underwent in-vitro fertilization here in our country. The entire pregnancy was monitored locally, and the birth was carried out at GAK," Dr. Aleksioska Papestjev stated during a press conference.
The baby, named Petar, was discharged from the hospital alongside his mother and has now returned home.
The director highlighted the perseverance of the parents, who never gave up on their dream of having a child, despite multiple failures, societal pressure, and prejudice.
The mother had endured ten failed in-vitro fertilization attempts and ten miscarriages. She also underwent three gynecological surgeries, two in Belgrade and one at GAK in Skopje.
During her carefully monitored pregnancy, the mother faced health challenges, including high blood pressure and diabetes, but ultimately everything turned out perfectly.
The father, a 65-year-old retiree, expressed his commitment to caring for the baby.
In the region, the oldest woman to give birth is from Serbia, though her pregnancy involved a donor egg. Globally, there are even cases like that of a 70-year-old woman in India becoming a first-time mother.
This story is not only a testament to the determination of the couple but also to the progress of reproductive medicine.