The birth of the test-tube babies, first among the Indian expat community, brought immense joy to the couple from Juvairiya, Thiruvanathapuram, in the southern Indian Kerala state.
The twins are born to the couple suffering from infertility for the last eight years. “The successful conception and delivery is the result of the complex IVF treatment,” gynecologist and fertility specialist Dr. Sajira Jafar Punathil told reporters.
“It was a cesarean delivery,” she said. The father of the twins works in a local construction company.
Dr. Sajira, also an Indian from Kerala, said she made use of TESE (testicular sperm extraction) and ICSI (intra cytoplasmic sperm injection) procedure to facilitate the conception.
“This procedure is used when a man's sperm count is extremely low or absent, or there is no sperm movement. ICSI can overcome this problem by collecting through the TESE biopsy and by inserting a single sperm directly into an egg.
“The resulting embryos are within the next few days transferred to the uterus of the mother through the normal IVF embryo transfer procedure,” she added.
“The woman conceived in May 2011. After the embryos were fully developed within eight months, she underwent the cesarean operation. The twins are 2,3400 gm and 2,040 gm respectively. The mother and her sons are "quite healthy now.”
Dr. Sajira, a consultant gynecologist and IVF specialist at Al Abeer Hospital, delivered the babies at Dr. Hassan Gazzawi Hospital near Sharafiyah, which is managed by Al Abeer Medical Group.
Dr. Sajira, who renders free online advice as a community service on infertility and IVF treatment procedures, has received congratulatory messages from both the Saudi and Indian medical fraternity for her achievement.
Dr. Sajira has a brilliant academic record. After two years of clinical training in reproductive medicine and surgery (IVF) from King Abdul Aziz Univeristy Medical College, Jeddah, she completed higher studies from Kiel University Germany with rank. She is a postgraduate in obstetrics and gynecology from the Government Medical College, Kozhikode.
