Take that Jon and Kate! Octuplets born in CA

[Ohiodislover]

Hope everyone is doing OK. That is a LOT of baby. I just can't imagine

Another article said they were born at 31 weeks, and that 2 were on vents.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28864195/?gt1=43001

Octuplets born ‘screaming and kicking’ in Calif.
The babies, who were delivered in 5 minutes, are world’s 2nd live-born set



BELLFLOWER, Calif. - A woman gave birth to eight babies in Southern California on Monday, the world’s second live-born set of octuplets.

Baby No. 8 was a bit of a surprise, as only seven were anticipated, KNBC TV in Los Angeles reported.

The mother, who was not identified, gave birth to six boys and two girls weighing between 1.8 pounds and 3.4 pounds, doctors at Kaiser Permanante Medical Center told The Associated Press.


“It’s a surprise,” Dr. Karen Maples said. “Eight newborns are in stable condition and they’re doing quite well.”

The infants, who are approximately nine weeks premature, are currently in the neonatal ICU. Two are on ventilators, while the other six are stable, Maples told KNBC.

Kaiser spokeswoman Myra Suarez said she could not release any information about the mother, including her condition or whether she used fertility drugs. Such drugs make multiple births more likely.

“They are all doing the best they can,” Suarez told the AP.

The first baby was born at 10:43 a.m.; the eighth one at 10:48 a.m. Maples also told KNBC that 46 doctors helped with the delivery.

“They were all screaming and kicking around very vigorously,” Dr. Harold Henry told TV station KCAL9.

‘It’s a blessing’


The first live-born octuplets were born in Houston in 1998, and one baby died about a week later. The surviving siblings — girls Ebuka, Gorom, Chidi, Chima and Echerem, and their brothers Ikem and Jioke — celebrated their 10th birthday in December.

Their parents, Nkem Chukwu and Iyke Louis Udobi, said they are astonished and grateful that their children have grown up to be healthy and active kids who are now in the fourth grade.

Chukwu said the new parents have much to look forward to.

“Just enjoy it. It’s a blessing, truly a blessing,” Chukwu said.

 

[java]

As of this morning, according to the Today show's interview of the doctors, all are breathing on their own! Go babies!

 

[RachelEllen]

Sorry, but reading stories like this makes me ill. We need to stop celebrating these cases. It is not medically competant to have octuplets result from fertility treatments. And because of this incompetance, lives and health of babies are put at risk.

Just to put this case in perspective, even with these babies having the tremendous luck to be born alive, the smallest baby is about half as well grown as he or she should be, and is much sicker (to be on a vent) than a 31 week infant normally is.

 

[kinntj]

Once these people have the babies, the best we can hope for is that they are healthy and happy.

We can't change people's minds on fertility treatments. They have made parents from these treatments that otherwise wouldn't be on their own. They have no control over how these babies split from the embryos that are placed in there. They just hope for the best outcome. Then it's the parents choice to put themselves or their kids at risk.

I think there's worst things out there than multiple births.

 

[castleview]

Sorry, but reading stories like this makes me ill. We need to stop celebrating these cases. It is not medically competant to have octuplets result from fertility treatments. And because of this incompetance, lives and health of babies are put at risk.

Just to put this case in perspective, even with these babies having the tremendous luck to be born alive, the smallest baby is about half as well grown as he or she should be, and is much sicker (to be on a vent) than a 31 week infant normally is.

Agreed!

 

[Disney Darling]

Sorry, but reading stories like this makes me ill. We need to stop celebrating these cases. It is not medically competant to have octuplets result from fertility treatments. And because of this incompetance, lives and health of babies are put at risk.

Just to put this case in perspective, even with these babies having the tremendous luck to be born alive, the smallest baby is about half as well grown as he or she should be, and is much sicker (to be on a vent) than a 31 week infant normally is.

Agreed!

 

[BCV513]

31 weeks is amazing for that many babies. And they're great sizes!

 

[Laura]

Once these people have the babies, the best we can hope for is that they are healthy and happy.

We can't change people's minds on fertility treatments. They have made parents from these treatments that otherwise wouldn't be on their own. They have no control over how these babies split from the embryos that are placed in there. They just hope for the best outcome. Then it's the parents choice to put themselves or their kids at risk.

I think there's worst things out there than multiple births.

This may not have been an in vitro pregnancy, but more like what happened to Kate Gosselin--too many eggs released at once due to drugs. She was even hospitalized for overstimulated follicles.

I have no problems with fertility treatments--my older brother and I wouldn't be here if our parents hadn't sought medical assistance to conceive. But there are fertility doctors out there who do things irresponsibly and rely too much on "selective reduction".