Males by birth, women by choice
Plastic surgeons at a private hospital in Mysore have performed a sex reassignment surgery on 27-year-old identical twins to make them females.
Such a surgery has been performed for the first time in the State and probably, for the first time in the country, doctors claimed.
Mahesh and Suresh (names changed), who were born and brought up as males, were witnesses to the broken marriage of their parents. Brought up by their mother in Muscat, they were confused when their behaviour pattern changed during the adolescent years.
Female mannerisms started dominating them and gradually the disparity between their anatomical sex and psychological gender became so strong and overwhelming that they approached experts, seeking help to change their anatomical sex to female.
Now, they are living a happy life and working as secretaries in a bank in one of the southern states.
Speaking to Deccan Herald, Dr B N Jayaram, plastic surgeon, Columbia Asia Hospital, Mysore, said the twins who were under mental stress coping with male anatomy and female mannerisms were operated upon after examination by endocrinologists and being administered female hormones for about two years.
That helped them develop secondary female characteristics. After necessary counselling and living in this role for more than two years, they fulfilled all the criteria and requirements for the sex reassignment surgery as laid down by the International Gender Dysphoria Association.
Simultaneous surgeries were avoided and the procedure was performed on one of the twins in April and the other in October 2012, Dr Jayaram said. This type of surgical procedure involves removal of male genitalia such as testicles, penis, scrotum and using penile skin to reconstruct a functional vagina.
He said the twins themselves funded the operation, which costs approximately Rs two lakh per patient. The patients will be on hormone treatment for the rest of their lives and gradually develop breasts and other features. However, they cannot bear children.
