Kaylie DeShane, 33, from New York, has set a remarkable record for giving birth to triplets in different decades, with a five-day interval between their births. Her first baby was born on December 28, 2019, while the other two triplets were born five days later on January 2, 2020. Despite the odds, her firstborn had only a nine percent chance of survival due to being born prematurely. Remarkably, all three triplets—Rowan, Declan, and Cian—survived and are now 17 months old.
Cian, one of the triplets, was born at just 22 weeks, with slim chances of survival. Due to his extremely premature birth, the medical team was focused on keeping the other babies inside Kaylie’s womb for as long as possible to increase their chances of survival. Despite the challenges and staggering odds, all three triplets defied expectations and thrived.
Kaylie shared her journey of trying to conceive after four years of attempting with her husband Brandon, 35. After considering in vitro fertilization (IVF), they decided to implant two embryos instead of just one, hoping to increase their chances of success. While they were aware that there was a 10 percent chance of twins and a one percent chance of triplets, they were shocked when they discovered they were expecting three babies. Despite the unexpected news, Kaylie and Brandon were thrilled with the incredible outcome and the blessing of having three babies after years of trying to expand their family.
At 16 weeks into her pregnancy, doctors discovered that Kaylie’s cervix was failing and required emergency surgery to stitch it up due to dilation of 1 to 2 centimeters. Although terrifying, the surgery was successful. However, at 22 weeks and five days, her water broke. Kaylie was frightened since she was only 22 weeks pregnant and unsure if the babies would survive if born at such an early stage in the pregnancy, especially given the potential challenges of extreme prematurity.
After being admitted to the hospital and spending the night, Kaylie described the moment of her first baby’s birth: “After they pulled him out, they eventually managed to stabilize him. I saw him for a split second before he was taken over to the neonatal intensive care unit. He was so small, I couldn’t believe it. He weighed less than 1 lb. I lay there expecting the next two babies to come but nothing happened. I was kind of like: ‘Now what?’ Nothing was happening and the doctors explained to me that they wanted to hold off delivering the next two babies for as long as possible because it was so early in the pregnancy.”
After spending five days in labor and reaching 10 cm dilation, the next two babies, Declan and Rowan, were born. Declan weighed 1 lb 7 oz, and Rowan was 1 lb 1 oz. Both babies had breathing tubes fitted and were taken to the neonatal intensive care unit (N.I.C.U).
Kaylie expressed, “Declan was the first baby to come home with us on April 17, before their actual due date of April 26. Rowan followed, coming home on April 30, and Cian joined us on May 4. Finally, our family was together at home. They’re healthy, thriving, and even close to walking, which is incredible considering we were never sure they would make it. I am so proud of them for the fight they fought.”