New Delhi:

Hermaphrodites, commonly known as eunuchs, can now choose a gender of their liking and some can even give birth to babies - thanks to a special procedure developed at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here.

After proper diagnosis, some 1,100 patients have already given proper gender identities as males or females and all of them are leading a normal life, doctors at the premier research and referral institute said.

“Treatment is available in select centres. At least 18 of the treated patients have also given birth to babies,” said Dr. DK Gupta, head of the department of paediatric surgeries. “After diagnosing physical attributes present inside the body and demands of the family, we conduct surgeries to reconstruct the vagina, uterus and even the male genitals,” Gupta said.

“The genetic disorder can be treated most successfully if they come in an early age. May be within the first three months of birth. Instead of handing them over to eunuchs, they should bring to hospitals - it is perfectly curable,” he said. “Though the specific reason for these kind of disorder is yet to be pin pointed yet marriage within families and relatives is considered to be a prime cause.” Gupta explained that there were mainly three kinds of hermaphrodites - the male pseudohermaphrodites (MPH), the female pseudohermaphrodites (FPH) and the true hermaphrodites (TH). MPH is the most common disorder and accounts for over 50 percent of inter-sex disorders and can be categorised as an incomplete male. They are generally male but look like females. Among the three categories, it’s the FPH group who can give birth to babies after successful surgeries earlier,” Gupta added.