Woman becomes mother to quadruplets at fifty following IVF treatment

Olusola Olonade married at the age of forty-eight and welcomed four babies at fifty after undergoing in vitro fertilisation. Her story gained widespread attention after BBC Africa published a video where she spoke about her journey to motherhood, her faith, and her hopes for her children. In the video, Olonade states she did not expect to have four babies at once and notes that her faith and family history of fertility gave her confidence before she chose IVF. She also acknowledges that the treatment does not always succeed and hopes to live long enough to become a great-grandmother.

Medical Risks

While her experience highlights the possibilities of reproductive medicine, pregnancy at fifty carries severe medical challenges. Dr Aswati Nair, Clinical Director and Fertility Specialist at Nova IVF Fertility in Rajouri Garden, Delhi, explains that natural conception is extremely unlikely at fifty as most women reach or approach menopause, and female fertility declines due to a reduction in egg number and quality. Dr Nair notes that delivering quadruplets during a first pregnancy at this age is exceptionally rare. Carrying four babies increases the risk of premature birth, low birth weight, fetal growth problems, and prolonged neonatal intensive care. Furthermore, a pregnancy at fifty raises the risk of high blood pressure, pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, blood clots, cardiovascular complications, and delivery issues.

Context

Advanced maternal age pregnancies require detailed pre-health screenings, thorough counseling on success rates, and close monitoring by a multidisciplinary medical team. Medical experts stress that while fertility treatments like IVF can help bypass certain biological hurdles, they cannot eliminate the health risks associated with older pregnancies.