A Montana mother has given birth to extremely rare identical triplets — a rare occurrence in and of itself but especially without the assistance of fertility drugs.
Jase and Jody Kinsey of Miles City, Montana, welcomed their boys last month. She stopped working in September to focus on the health of the babies, and her own. The babies were ultimately delivered just before 32 weeks, which is standard for triplets.
Identical triplets occur when one egg is fertilized and divides into two, creating identical twins, and then one of those eggs splits again, creating the third baby.
“To have a patient with spontaneous identical triplets is incredibly rare,” about one in a million and the first he’d seen in his practice, Jody’s doctor, Dr. Dana Damron, maternal fetal medicine physician at Billings Clinic told the Billings Gazette. “Having to deliver early is another one of our greatest fears and worries,” he told the newspaper.
Cade, weighed 3 pounds, 13 ounces; Ian came next at 3 pounds, 11 ounces; and Milo was born last at 4 pounds, 1 ounce.
Jody found out she was pregnant last May. Since Jase’s father was a twin, the idea of a multiple birth wasn’t out of the question.
But an initial ultrasound at a pregnancy outreach clinic presented an even bigger surprise.
“The technician said ‘there’s a lot going on in here,’ ” she recalled. “She said ‘you need to get a second opinion, but to me it looks like triplets.’ ”
Jody’s initial reaction was shock. Then she called Jase and told him he had better sit down.
“Why, are we having twins?” he asked her. “She said, ‘no. We’re having triplets.’ ”
Jody’s Miles City obstetrician forwarded information about the identical triplets, including a second ultrasound, to Damron who told Jody he wanted to see her the next day.
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“With them being identical, they all shared the same placenta so there could be possible complications,” Jody said. “And he wanted to make sure everything was OK.”
After the initial appointment, she saw Damron every four weeks. The physician’s main concern was making sure each triplet was growing equally and symmetrically.
“Having to deliver early is another one of our greatest fears and worries,” he said. “So that’s why we watch the patients closely.
They delivered the three infants by C-section, and each one came out bawling.
“When you have three different babies crying at once, it makes a very unique melody,” Damron said.
