Mangalore : Under the leadership of Dr. Ali Kumble, a highly qualified team of doctors and medical personnel saved four babies born to the same woman (quadruplets) at Indiana Hospital in Mangalore.

The premature quadruplets were born to Latheef and Aysha Tahira of Kasargod after years of childlessness.

Speaking at the press meet, Dr. Yusuf Kumble said that since the babies were born prematurely, doctors were unsure if they would survive as the survival rate of quadruplets was one in 70 lakh. The babies also required to be put on life saving support in a highly sophisticated care centre, which was a very expensive process.

He also said that, the babies were admitted to the NICU of Indiana Hospital on March 11 and a team of doctors under the leadership of Dr. Ali Kumble took the responsibility.

The hospital management paid the costs since father could not afford to pay the bills. The doctors, who were determined to save all the four babies, ultimately succeeded after one month’s hard work.

Dr. Kumble also said that these four babies are identical quadruplets and happens only once in 13 million births. There are only 60 such recorded cases in the world where they are born at 26 weeks of pregnancy and weigh only 500 – 900gms.

The doctors had to maintain a normal breathing pattern and tolerated the food given to them to make them survive and bring them out of danger. The hygiene and sanitation maintenance was also done to avoid sepsis, and was handled only by nurses trained especially for this job.