A Nebraska woman who was born with a double uterus was shocked to discover that she was pregnant in both of them at the same time — but the pregnancy would not go smoothly, and she went into early labor at just 22.5 weeks gestation.
Megan Phipps, 24, was born with uterine didelphys, a rare condition in which a woman has two uteruses, and sometimes even a cervix for each.
The condition hadn’t been an issue in her previous two pregnancies, which happened on her right side — but earlier this year, she discovered that she was pregnant with twins, one is each uterus.
According to Good Morning America, Phipps went into early labor, delivering both babies in her second trimester — when they weight under a pound each.
One of the infants died shortly after. But the second, Reece was born at Bryan Health Lincoln.
Megan Phipps was 24 when baby Reece was born. This makes her the youngest child to have been born at her Nebraska hospital.
The story of her life is more interesting because she was born with Uterine Didelphys. This rare condition causes a woman to have 2 uteruses. Sometimes, there’s even one cervix.
Phipps was the mother of two previous children, both of which were conceived in her right-hand uterus. She assumed that her left uterus wasn’t yet active because she had previously had them.
She felt something was wrong during her pregnancy and went to her doctor. The specialist referred her.
Dr. Sullivan informed her that twins had been discovered in her uterus.
Only one in about every 2,000 women have uterine didelphys, according to Scientific American, and the odds of being pregnant in two wombs at the same time is one in 50 million.
In June, when Phipps was just 22 weeks pregnant, she went to the hospital in ‘excruciating pain,’ where she soon went into preterm labor.
Currently, a fetus is generally considered viable — meaning it can live outside the womb — at 24 weeks.
She discovered she was carrying twins earlier this year. One is for each uterus. It is possible to be in both wombs simultaneously, but it’s a one in 50 million chance.
Her second trimester was her labor. She gave birth to twins that weighed less than 1 lb each.
Reece survived the death of his first child, but he died.
Phipps stated that she had promised Phipps her baby, “that so long as she continued fighting, I would continue fighting with her.” That she kept,
There are some who can live past 22 weeks. But the odds of survival are slim. According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynologists, infants born before 23 weeks have a survival rate of just five to six percent.
Most people who survive are affected by significant disabilities or complications.
The doctor in Phipps’s case said that the odds of Phipps having twins were not good, especially considering the unique circumstances of her pregnancies.
Phipps replied, “He had stated that the girls would have an 1% chance,”
But she informed him before she gave birth that she needed all possible interventions to preserve her baby.
She gave birth on June 11 to Riley, her first child. Reece became her second child the next day.
Both were less than one pound.
She weighed eight pounds and was released on November 2.
Reece is currently experiencing some health complications and must return to the hospital to be treated for metapneumovirus.
Additionally, her gastrostomy-button was used to deliver food to her stomach.
Riley unfortunately passed away just 12 days later.
Phipps stated that she put Reece’s ashes into her new urn and since then, Reece stayed up with Phipps and I in the NICU, until Reece came home.
Reece was able to live. She needed plenty of medical intervention, including a dozen blood transfusions and a ventilator for 45 days.
Phipps claimed that Phipps promised her baby that she would fight with her as long as her baby kept fighting. She did.
At eight pounds, she was discharged on November 2 and returned home to her mother and father, Dillon Martin.
Reese is one of the few babies to have survived at this hospital.
Kallie Gertsch was a nurse at Reese’s NICU and said, “She’s a real miracle.”[She’s] definitely the biggest success that I have witnessed.’
Reece does have some health problems, and had to go back to the hospital after developing metapneumovirus. She also had a gastrostomy-button place To dispense food through her stomach. She also needed oxygen to return to normal.