Experts in the health sector recently celebrated a major milestone when the Bridge Clinic, Nigeria’s foremost and leading fertility clinic, recorded the live birth of its first baby from oocytes cryopreservation (eggs freezing), making it the first birth from this novel procedure in Nigeria.
Fertility Physician, the Bridge Clinic, Dr Emmanuel Owie, while speaking with LEADERSHIP, said the birth of Tiwatope, (surname withheld) is the first baby conceived through the oocyte freezing protocol.
Owie said Tiwa’s birth is significant in many respect as it puts Nigeria on the global map as regards the practice of oocyte cryopreservation, a new offering in the In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) space.
Narrating the process involved, the fertility physician said, “Tiwatope’s mother had her eggs frozen using the 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.
.jpg)
“On her readiness for pregnancy, we fertilized the eggs using a standard technique known as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) in order to overcome the egg shell which normally gets hardened with freezing. The fertilized egg was subsequently transferred into her womb, resulting in the pregnancy with Tiwa. She had her ante natal care in her family hospital and delivered the baby boy through caesarian section. The baby and his mother are in good health to the delight of the family and friends.” Owie said “At the Bridge Clinic, we celebrate Tiwa’s birth as it is a further demonstration of our coming of age in the practice of assisted reproductive technology. It is a show of the sum of our strengths, our people, our process and our infrastructure. It demonstrates our commitment to global best practices which ensures that our offerings are in tandem with what is obtainable in the developed world, both in variety and in quality.”
He however recommended the process 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 childbearing in order to pursue some personal goals.
Corporate marketing and customer relations coordinator, the Bridge Clinic, Dr. Okunday Omogbehin, said this is indeed a welcomed development as it can help to eradicate barrenness in women.
Omogbehin said the process is the safest as studies have shown no sign of either increased rates of chromosomal defects or pregnancy complications between embryos derived from frozen eggs and those embryos derived from fresh eggs.
By: Odiri Uchenunu
Leadership News
ABUJA: Training Schedule for Basic Life Support BLS, Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support ACLS, First Aid, CPR, AED
PORTHARCOURT: Training Schedule for Basic Life Support BLS, Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support ACLS, First Aid, CPR, AED
LAGOS: Training Schedule for Basic Life Support BLS, Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support ACLS, First Aid, CPR, AED
STOP paying for airtime and electricity, Let your phone pay its bills with ScreenT
You may also like
Comrade Lemii Christian Emerges Chairman of NANNM Rivers State Branch in Historic Victory
PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA Following the long awaited National Association of N…
FG Supports Robotic Surgery Expansion to Reduce Medical Tourism
Nigeria is taking another step toward strengthening specialised healthcare …
Complete Knee Replacement Rehabilitation Package in Lagos
Knee replacement surgery is a major step toward pain relief and improved mo…
NAMDA threatens strike over unpaid medical lecturers’ allowances
The Nigerian Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA) has warned…
Resident Doctors Signal End to Strike Threat After High-Level Talks with Gbajabiamila
The threat of a nationwide indefinite strike by the Nigerian Association of…
