"This is one of the rarest cases I have ever seen."
An Indian woman is believed to be one of the world’s oldest first-time mothers, having welcomed her first child at the age of 70.
Jivunben Rabari and her husband Maldhari, aged 75, proudly showed off their son as they stated that he had been conceived through IVF.
They are yet to reveal their son’s name.
The couple, from the village of Mora, Gujarat, had been trying to have a baby for decades and all hope seemed lost after doctors told Jivunben she could not have children.
But the couple have now revealed they finally welcomed their son through IVF in October 2021.
Jivunben and Maldhari have been married for 45 years.
The Indian woman said she does not have ID to prove her age but she insisted that is 70-years-old. This would make her one of the oldest first-time mothers in the world.
Dr Naresh Bhanushali said:
“When they first came to us, we told them that they couldn’t have a child at such an old age, but they insisted.
“They said that many of their family members did it as well.
“This is one of the rarest cases I have ever seen.”
In India, there have been numerous instances of elderly women having children through IVF.
In 2019, Erramatti Mangayamma became the world’s oldest mother when she gave birth to twins, both baby girls.
She had been married to 82-year-old Yerramatti Raja Rao for around 57 years.
Erramatti had been wanting to become a mother but had no success.
Decades passed but the couple did not have a child and Erramatti desperately wanted to become a mother. They soon decided to try IVF.
Their initial attempts failed but in 2018, the couple reached out to Dr Sanakkayala Umashankar, an IVF expert based in Guntur. Erramatti decided to undergo IVF treatment again.
She said was inspired to try again for a baby after one of her neighbours conceived aged 55.
The elderly woman became pregnant in January 2019 and she remained in the hospital for the entire nine months of her pregnancy. Medical professionals closely monitored her throughout the process.
When she went into labour, doctors decided to perform a caesarian as they considered the woman’s age.
After the birth, Erramatti said: “I cannot express my feeling in words.
“These babies complete me. My six-decade-long wait has finally come to an end.
“Now, no one call me infertile anymore.
“I thought about taking help of IVF procedure after a neighbour conceived at the age of 55.”
Sadly, her husband passed away from a heart attack in 2020.