What Is Uterus Transplant? First Baby Born From Womb Transplant In US

In a milestone for the U.S., a woman who was born without a uterus gave birth to a healthy baby Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. The birth was a pre-planned Caesarean section

The news was confirmed by the hospital’s spokesman Craig Civale on Friday who did not give out any others details, citing privacy.

The new mother received the womb from Taylor Siler, mother-of-two nurse who lived near the hospital, reports said.

“I have family members who struggled to have babies, and it's not fair. I just think that if we can give more people that option, that's an awesome thing,” Siler was quoted as saying by Time.

Uterine transplant is “a surgical procedure whereby a healthy uterus is transplanted into an organism of which the uterus is absent or diseased.”

According to U.S. National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine, “Uterine factor infertility is estimated to affect thousands of women worldwide and can be caused by either congenital Müllerian malformations such as in the Mayer–Rokitansky–Küster–Hauser (MRKH) syndrome, or more commonly acquired as in the cases of women suffering from Asherman’s syndrome, pregnancy interfering myomas, or hysterectomies.”

The study also stated that “ Uterus transplantation is a complex procedure and is surrounded by not only medical and psychological implications but also ethical, moral, and cultural concerns and expectations. A transplantation of a uterus, unlike any other organ transplantation, involves no less than four parties – recipient, donor, partner of the recipient, and the possible future child. All of them are exposed to potential risks if the surgery has to be performed. ”

Uterus transplant is, however, not restricted to living or deceased organ donor.

Dr. Robert T. Gunby Jr., the obstetrician and gynecologist (ob-gyn) who delivered the baby said: “I’ve delivered a lot of babies, but this one was special. When I started my career we didn’t even have sonograms. Now we are putting in uteruses from someone else and getting a baby.”

Dr. Liza Johannesson, an ob-gyn and uterus transplant surgeon at Baylor said: “We’ve been preparing for this moment for a very long time. I think everyone had tears in their eyes when the baby came out. I did for sure.”

This is, however, not the first case in the world. Mats Brannstrom, a doctor in Sweden is the first one in the world to deliver a baby from uterus transplant. Until last year, Brannstrom is said to have delivered five such babies. Worldwide, there have been 16 cases of uterus transplants till date.