A mum has given birth to twins born from embryos that had been frozen for over 30 years in what is though to be a record breaking feat.
Lydia and Timothy Ridgeway were born on October 31 this year but the embryos they grew from were frozen on April 22, 1992.
According to the National Embryo Donation Center, this is likely the longest-frozen embryos to ever result in a live birth.
Parents Rachel and Philip Ridgeway were understandably thrilled, reports CNN.
“There is something mind-boggling about it,” Mr Ridgeway said as he, “I was 5 years old when God gave life to Lydia and Timothy, and he’s been preserving that life ever since.”
The couple have four other children, ages 8, 6, 3 and almost 2, although none were conceived via IVF.
This scientific achievement cannot be formally recognised as a record as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention doesn't track how long embryos have been frozen among their data.
Despite this there is no evidence of an older embryo being used in a successful birth.
The embryos were created for an anonymous married couple but was later donated to the National Embryo Donation Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, in hopes another couple might be able to use them.
For 30 years the twins-to-be sat in storage bathed in liquid nitrogen keeping them at a cool -200C.
The process the Ridgeways went through is called embryo donation.
The medical name for the process the Ridgeways went through is embryo donation.
IVF tends to extract more embryos than are ultimately used so the spare ones are donated whether to science or to a couple hoping to have children.
For the Ridgeways, they just hoped to grow their family even further.
Mr Ridgeway said: “We weren’t looking to get the embryos that have been frozen the longest in the world. We just wanted the ones that had been waiting the longest.”
Not to take embryos away from another couple trying for a baby, the Ridgeways asked those embryos under 'special consideration', meaning it had been hard to find recipients.
Out of the five embryos defrosted for the couple, only three were viable. All three were transferred into Ms Ridgeway.
According to studies, around 25 per cent to 40 per cent of frozen embryo transfers result in a live birth.
The Ridgeways were lucky and two of the three embryos grew into a baby - the twins.
Throughout the process the happy couple involved their other children.
Phillip said: “They were excited and happy with us every step along the way. They love their siblings, and they play together and were looking forward to finding out whether God had given them two boys, two girls or a brother and a sister."
