A 61-year-old woman has made history in North Macedonia by becoming the country's oldest mother after giving birth to a baby boy named Petar. The remarkable birth, achieved through in vitro fertilisation (IVF) at the University Clinic of Gynaecology and Obstetrics in Skopje, has been celebrated as a major milestone in medical science.
The clinic's director, Irena Aleksioska Papestiev, praised the achievement, stating, "The birth of baby Petar by a 61-year-old patient shows that there are no more limits in the world of medicine." Despite the mother's underlying health conditions, including hypertension and diabetes, doctors carefully monitored her throughout the pregnancy. Both mother and child were discharged from the hospital in good health.
The mother, who had undergone 10 separate IVF treatments over the years, benefited from North Macedonia's lack of age restrictions for fertility treatments. Her 65-year-old husband also expressed immense joy over their new arrival, celebrating the long-awaited moment.
This extraordinary event comes at a time when North Macedonia is grappling with significant demographic challenges. The country has been experiencing a population decline, with a fertility rate of just 1.48 births per woman in 2023. Factors such as emigration and economic stagnation have caused the population to shrink by nearly 10% since 2001, dropping to 1.8 million people, according to the latest census data.
The birth of baby Petar has become a symbol of hope for North Macedonia, highlighting the advancements in medical science and offering a glimpse of optimism for the nation's future amid ongoing demographic struggles.
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