Mother of four gives birth to rare naturally conceived identical quadruplets
An Australian woman has given birth to four identical girls conceived naturally in an extremely rare one-in-15-million pregnancy. Doctors say the babies, born at 28 weeks, share one placenta, making it a rare case.
A 34-year-old woman in Australia has given birth to four identical baby girls in what doctors are calling an exceptionally rare natural pregnancy, with the odds estimated at around one in 15 million.
Janita Sau Na'amoana delivered the quadruplets by caesarean section on July 14 at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital in Brisbane. According to the hospital, all four babies are identical quadruplets sharing a single placenta, making the pregnancy one of the rarest ever recorded.
Unlike many multiple pregnancies, the babies were conceived naturally, without the use of fertility treatment. According to Reuters, doctors believe this could be the first known case of spontaneously conceived identical quadruplets in Australia.
DOCTORS DESCRIBE THE RARE PREGNANCY
"We don't think it's ever happened in Australia," Dr. Bendall said in a video shared by Reuters. "This was a big surprise. Janita already had four babies at home, including one that she was breastfeeding at the time. So when they found out they were expecting four babies instead of one, they were quite shocked."
Doctors described the pregnancy as extremely high-risk, as pregnancies involving identical quadruplets sharing one placenta carry a significantly higher chance of complications for both the mother and the babies.
"This was a very high risk of complications. So the fact that we've got four beautiful, healthy babies born at 28 weeks and four days is incredible, and we're very happy to be part of it," Dr. Bendall added.
Janita and her husband, Jortham, were already parents to four children aged between one and ten years. With the arrival of the quadruplet girls, the couple is now raising eight children, doubling the size of their family overnight.