Russian-Armenian gynecologist Leila Adamyan has performed surgery to restore the reproductive functions of the ovaries of a 36-year-old woman. This is the first time such an operation has ever been conducted in Russia, TASS reports.

Adamyan is the deputy director of the V.I.Kulakov National Medical Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology and a leading specialist in Russia.

“On March 6, for the first time in Russia, academician L.V. Adamyan performed a unique operation to restore the reproductive functions of a woman aged 36 with premature ovarian failure,” a statement from medical center said.

The technique of surgical intervention was proposed in 2010 by a group of Japanese researchers led by Professor Kazuhiro Kawamura and was subsequently approved and tested in Spain, Poland, China, Mexico and Japan.

Such an intervention allows women aged 40-45 and those suffering from Premature Ovarian Insufficiency (POI) to produce eggs.

According to the Mayo Clinic, premature ovarian insufficiency – also known as premature ovarian failure – refers to a loss of normal function of a woman’s ovaries prior to the age of 40. If ovaries fail, they do not produce normal amounts of estrogen or release eggs regularly, commonly resulting in infertility.