After Brain Surgery, Dallas Mom Gives Birth to Quadruplets
Experts say most single pregnancies last 39 weeks. Meanwhile, twins are usually born at 36 weeks, triplets at 32 weeks, quadruplets with 30 weeks, and quintuplets at 29 weeks.
For couples, discovering that they are expecting quadruplets would be considered enough of a shock. However, these parents from Texas, after receiving the happy news, learned something devastating.
Aside from the not-so-ordinary pregnancy, Katie Sturm also learned she had a brain tumor and would need surgery to remove it.
In an interview with a news site, she said that when she found out she was having quadruplets she "straight-up cried for like two days."
Katie and her husband, Chris, were shocked when they were told about their babies, then, a seizure resulted in one more diagnosis.
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Brain Surgery Before the Quadruplets Was Born
The news, Chris recalled, became one of these moments where the possibility that an incident could happen to his wife and kids was quite predominant and very real.
Before Katie gave birth to their quadruplets, all boys, in July on their 32nd week, she underwent brain surgery. According to Dr. Toral Patel, if one didn't know the mother had brain cancer, he wouldn't notice she underwent such surgery.
"She looks great," the doctor said, adding, Katie has coped with this better than any individual "could have ever imagined, and she's remarkable."
At that point, Katie said she just turned what they were going through to God. She added, she guessed God would not give them quadruplets "if He did not want me to be around for them."
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Healthy Quadruplets
The UT Southwestern Medical Center's Dr. Becky Ennis said all four babies came out crying. She added the delivery was all flawless "went really without a hitch."
After several weeks of stay in the NICU, the Sturm quadruplets have finally gone home to be with their big brother, Ryan.
Not a bad haul for this mom who, in her teenage years, was told that a medical condition would hinder him from bearing children.
Katie said she did not go through any fertility treatments. The chance of being pregnant with a set of quadruplets without any treatment, according to some studies, is one in 700,000.
That is why for this mom who just had brain surgery before giving birth to their healthy quadruplets, their babies may be a lot to handle, "But they are a blessing."
Quadruplets Pregnancy Complications
According to the American Pregnancy Association, twins typically encounter lesser medical conditions and complications among all kinds of multiple births.
Each additional baby a mother carries during pregnancy raises the probability of developing pregnancy issues.
Some of these complications include preterm labor or delivery, preeclampsia, low birth weight, gestational diabetes, cesarean and fetal demise, or loss.
In the case of the Sturm quadruplets, if compared to a regular singular born pregnancy, were born prematurely at 32 weeks. According to medical experts, preterm labor or delivery can be defined as "delivery before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy.
Medical research indicates that the length of gestation usually reduces with every additional baby. On average, "Most single pregnancies" last 39 weeks. Meanwhile, twins are usually born at 36 weeks, triplets at 32 weeks, quadruplets with 30 weeks, and quintuplets at 29 weeks.
According to research, nearly 60 percent of twins are delivered premature or preterm, while 90 percent of triplets are said to be born preterm.
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Sep 24, 2020 08:20 AM EDT
