A first-time mother whose twins were astonishingly delivered three weeks apart — and at different hospitals — has told of her heartbreak after only one survived.
Kayleigh Doyle, from Manchester, was just 22-and-a-half weeks pregnant when her waters unexpectedly broke.
The 22-year-old spent five days under close observation at Royal Oldham Hospital before giving birth naturally.
Her son Arlo, however, did not survive.
Medics told Miss Doyle her second twin was expected ‘in the next couple of hours’, but were left baffled when her contractions stopped. They warned he would likely die.
Kayleigh Doyle, from Manchester, was just 22-and-a-half weeks pregnant when her waters unexpectedly broke. The 22-year-old spent five days under close observation at Royal Oldham Hospital before giving birth naturally. Pictured, Ms Doyle with her son Astro
Medics told Miss Doyle her second twin, Astro, was expected ‘in the next couple of hours’, but were left baffled when her contractions stopped. They warned he would likely die. Pictured, Astro now two-years-old
Incredibly, 22 days after Arlo’s delivery, Astro was delivered via a C-section at the nearby St Mary’s Hospital and survived against the odds. He weighed 2lbs, slightly less than a 1kg bag of sugar
After five days of no movement, Miss Doyle was sent home.
Incredibly, 22 days after Arlo’s delivery, Astro was delivered via a C-section at the nearby St Mary’s Hospital and survived against the odds. He weighed 2lbs, slightly less than a 1kg bag of sugar.
Miss Doyle, whose ordeal happened in 2021, now believes she claims the record for the longest time apart for twins to be born in England.
She said: ‘After the trauma of giving birth to my first baby — I was gobsmacked when they said I could go home.
‘To this day, I still can’t find a woman in the UK who can beat 22 days.
‘I was assigned a doctor by a different hospital, and we had daily check-ups between the two births.
‘Every day that passed, he’d say he genuinely couldn’t believe it.’
Miss Doyle added: ‘When Astro arrived I couldn’t believe he had survived all that time.’
Miss Doyle said she hadn’t experienced any complications until she suffered labour pains on March 15.
‘I was aware of all the risks that came with having twins,’ she added. ‘I even paid for private GP appointments because I was so worried about complications.
‘When I hit 22-and-a-half weeks, literally, I was in bed and had the worst pain of my entire life.
‘I wasn’t sure what was going on, so I went to the toilet downstairs, and my waters broke.’
After delivering Arlo, who weighed just 1.1lb (0.5kg), doctors told Miss Doyle a blood clot in his placenta was the likely cause.
Such blockages can block the flow of blood being supplied to a foetus.
According to baby loss charity Tommy’s, the risk of delivering prematurely spikes from seven to 57 per cent in pregnancies involving more than one foetus.
The chance of survival at 22 weeks — two weeks before the abortion time limit — stands at around just 10 per cent. Rates exceed 60 per cent at the 24-week mark.
The NHS says about one in eight pregnancies end in miscarriage, which is medically defined as the loss of pregnancy during the first 24 weeks.
Other estimates put this figure higher because many women in the very early stages of pregnancy may not realise they are expecting when a miscarriage occurs.
Stillbirths — when a baby is born dead after six months of being in the womb – occur in around one per 200 births in England.
Discussing Arlo, who was born on March 20, Miss Doyle said: ‘He looked like a normal baby.
‘They sat me down after I gave birth, and told me they weren’t expecting “twin two” to survive and he’ll probably be born in the next couple of hours.’
Under medical guidance, if contractions stop after the first birth, hormones are often added to a drip to restart them.
Case reports, however, have shown that medics on rare occasions will let the second foetus continue to gestate in the womb, if the first-delivered is extremely premature.
It is recommended that women should rest for the remainder of their pregnancy.
On April 11, medics discovered she had suffered a placental abruption – a rare, serious complication in which the placenta separates from the lining of the womb. They recommended delivering Astro (pictured) through a C-section
Two weeks later Miss Doyle and Astro, now two, were discharged and she held a funeral for Arlo. Since the ordeal she channeled her grief into supporting others and has now trained as a natal intensive care unit (NICU) volunteer
By March 25, Astro had still not arrived and medics discharged Miss Doyle.
She added: ‘I started making appointments with another doctor at St Mary’s Hospital and he couldn’t believe how long the gap was beginning to get.
‘I think we all just went into survival mode.
‘But I still found it really triggering whenever one of my doctors would ask me where “twin one” is.
‘We’d bought double everything for the babies — two cots, a pram with two seats. It was hard seeing the twin mums I followed on TikTok recording all their milestones.’
Then on April 11, medics discovered she had suffered a placental abruption – a rare, serious complication in which the placenta separates from the lining of the womb.
They recommended delivering Astro through a C-section.
He was born with a hole in his heart and sight problems.
Two weeks later Miss Doyle and Astro, now two, were discharged and she held a funeral for Arlo.
Since the ordeal she channeled her grief into supporting others and has now trained as a natal intensive care unit (NICU) volunteer.
Miss Doyle said: ‘I heard an NICU charity was looking for volunteers in Manchester – looking for people to do stay-and-play sessions, and going to the cot side of premature babies.
Vicky Green (pictured), from Manchester, is thought to currently hold the record for the longest time apart for twins to be born in England. She gave birth first to Presley (pictured right), who weighed just 1lb 8oz, when she was 26 weeks pregnant and then Paisley (pictured left) 12 days later
‘I went through a year of training and you’ve got to have had a premature baby to do it.
‘I know what it’s like to feel in-the-dark about it — especially with the gap in between the two babies.
‘But I honestly can’t think of anything more rewarding. There is a light at the end of the tunnel.’
Vicky Green, from Manchester, is thought to currently hold the record for the longest time apart for twins to be born in England.
In 2018, she gave birth first to Presley who weighed just 1lb 8oz, when she was just 26 weeks pregnant.
After her labour stopped, she delivered Paisley by caesarean 12 days later again at St Mary’s Hospital. She weighed 2lb 8oz.
The twins stayed in hospital while they grew stronger and at five months were allowed home.
The world record — twins born 90 days apart — was set in Baltimore in US in 1996.
Source: Mail Online
