Stockton Couple Welcomes Rare Set Of Twins On Leap Day
STOCKTON (CBS13) — A Stockton couple received a special leap year gift on Monday.
Josefina and Greg Walker welcomed their identical, monoamniotic twin daughters, Isabella and Sofia, at the UC Davis Medical Center.
The twins shared an amniotic sac in their mother's uterus during their 32 weeks of gestation. The condition is rare and only occurs in about 1 percent of all twin pregnancies and is as rare as 1 in 65,000 births.
"We're blessed," Greg said. "We're thrilled to death that they're finally here and they're doing as well as they are because it was a scary journey getting to this point. With all the risk factors involved in the pregnancy and getting them to 32 weeks."
Complications could have included umbilical cord entanglement or one twin receiving the majority of the nourishment. The complications claim 20 percent of monoamniotic twins.
"The babies are doing fabulous. They don't need oxygen, they both look good, they both started on small feeding volumes and they look great," said Dr. Donald Null.
Josefina spent the past 45 days in the hospital as she was monitored for cord entanglement or sudden death. The care team watched the fetal heart tracings every two hours each day for signs of fetal compromise.
After a month and a half in the hospital, she says that first cry from the first-born Isabella was truly emotional.
"Oh my goodness I cried because I was waiting for that. I was waiting for them to cry," she said.
Mom and babies are doing well and are expected to go home sometime toward the end of April, around their actual due date.
As for when their birthday will be? Mom and Dad are still deciding between Feb. 28 and March 1.
