He was conceived from frozen egg of his 44-year-old mother, who had suffered infertility for 8 years. The birth and conception of Tiwatope, which is the 5001st in the world, were carried out by Nigerian fertility specialists at The Bridge Clinic, Lagos, where the mother had her eggs frozen using the vitrification (flash-freezing) process.
Announcing the medical milestone, Dr Emmanuel Owie, said the birth of the baby on February 16, 2016, effectively puts Nigeria on the global map as regards the practice of oocyte (egg) freezing or cryopreservation, a new offering in the in-vitro fertilization (IVF) space.
He said prior to the birth of Tiwatope, the new practice seemed to be an exclusive preserve of the developed world of Europe and North America. He said: “Tiwatope’s mother had her eggs frozen for two months, using the vitrification, also known as flash-freezing, process.
This is the cutting edge technology in cryobiology, where the eggs or oocytes of a woman is dehydrated and the water content is replaced with ‘anti-freeze’ solution (cryoprotectants) before freezing. This will prevent the formation of ice crystals which could destroy the cell.”
On her readiness for pregnancy, Owie noted: “We fertilized the eggs using a standard technique known as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) to overcome the egg shell which normally gets hardened with freezing. The fertilized egg was subsequently transferred into her womb, resulting in the pregnancy
She delivered Tiwa through CS. Owie said egg freezing was particularly recommended for women diagnosed with cancer, who may lose their fertility during chemotherapy; women with a family history of early menopause; women with objections to storing frozen embryos for religious and/or moral reasons; and women who want to delay child-bearing in order to pursue some personal goals…. till they’re 57….. Cc: Vanguradngr, The Nation