Twins born 24 days apart in Boston


In terms of childbirth, this is nothing short of amazing.

Twin boys were born 24 days apart in Boston. WTKR reports Linda da Silva was just 24 weeks along when she went into labor with her the first child, Alexandre.

Tufts Medical Center Doctors reportedly tried to delay the birth given the heightened risk of premature delivery, but Alexandre apparently didn't get the memo and came out weighing only 1 pound 10 ounces.

Da Silva told ABC she was definitely concerned. "I panicked. ... It wasn't time. It was too early. I knew I could lose the babies."

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Doctors then performed what's called a "delayed twin birth," which is a seldom-performed and risky procedure to give the second twin more time inside mom, but it appears it worked, as twin No. 2 – Ronaldo – was given another 24 days to grow before Da Silva gave birth a second time.

ABC: "I thought it was absurd. I didn't think this ... I didn't know this was possible."

The father of the twins was obviously choked up but quick to joke to ABC about his new little ones. "One twin was born in winter, and one was born in spring."

Apparently, this type of delayed twin delivery is so improbable it's barely even tracked.

The Boston Globe points to a study that found only 14 cases in about 97,000 deliveries over 12 years.

Both twins are doing well in the hospital's intensive care unit, and they'll be good to go home on their original due date, June 18.