Mangayamma

GUNTUR: A 74-year-old woman from a village in East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh became perhaps the oldest ever to become a mother when she gave birth to twin girls at a private hospital in Guntur on Thursday.

The woman, who married her farmer husband 57 years ago, opted for in vitro fertilisation ( IVF ). A team of four doctors performed a caesarean section on her, after which the twins were born.

Yaramati Sitarama Rajarao, a farmer from Nelaparthipudi village, had married Mangayamma in 1962. They were not able to conceive a child despite consulting several doctors and temples.

Mangayamma says not bearing a child had been a heavy burden that she carried all these years. "People looked at me with accusing eyes as if I had committed a sin," she told TOI. "Neighbours would call me 'godralu' (a curse-word for a childless woman). However, my husband stood by me like arock."

"We are the happiest couple on earth today. We have our own children," said an ecstatic Rajarao who is confident that they will be able to bring up the girls well.

In fact, the couple had given up on becoming parents until they consulted IVF expert Dr Sanakkayala Umasankar in Guntur about a year ago. Dr Umasankar constituted a medical board of cardiologists, gynaecologists and paediatricians before deciding on treatment.

The doctors convinced the couple to take the IVF route since Mangayamma had crossed the menopausal stage. "Keeping in view the confidentiality clause in the agreement with the patient, we can't disclose certain details. But we followed all rules," Umasankar told TOI.

Mangayamma conceived in the very first cycle of the IVF procedure. She was admitted to the hospital in January and stayed under the observation. The 74-year-old's sound physical health also made the job easier. She was also subjected to several rounds of psychological counselling to ensure she remained mentally strong.

"Both the mother and babies are doing fine. Ten doctors worked for nine months to keep a close watch on her health. This is a medical miracle," Dr Umasankar said.

"It's due to the grace of God and doctors that I have now become a proud father of two baby girls," said Rajarao, who distributed sweets at the hospital. "I am very happy. After 54 years, God has answered our prayers," Mangayamma said.

Meanwhile, a debate has been triggered in the medical fraternity on whether it is wise to make a woman undergo IVF at Mangayamma's age. Many gynaecologists said they were against it. "The doctors should not have considered the case even if the couple pleaded with them," said a gynaecologist.

Dr Umasankar, however, contended that they followed all laws. But the doctor refused to divulge whether Mangayamma and Rajarao were biological parents of the twins.

"It is certainly a debatable issue. We will discuss this at our next governing council meeting," Andhra Pradesh Medical Council chairman Buchipudi Sambasiva Reddy told TOI.

