Vanishing Twin Syndrome Surprises Woman With Miracle Twins After Losing Her Babies, 16 Miscarriages

A mother from Liverpool, who has been through 16 miscarriages, experienced the joys of giving birth to miracle twins following an eventful pregnancy, where she was diagnosed with "vanishing twin syndrome."

Emma White, 38, welcomed two healthy girls, Aurora Azalea and Ophelia Lili, but her pregnancy scan revealed that she miscarried six weeks before their births. However, after she was told of the miscarriage, the doctors informed her that she actually conceived quadruplets and was still pregnant.

It all started when the mom and her husband, Joe White, rushed to the Liverpool Women's Hospital because she had bleeding episodes on her sixth week of pregnancy. The hospital took a blood test and asked her to return two days later for some scans. She knew that something was off because the sonographer didn't show her the screen and called for the other medical workers to the room.

After some commotion, someone from the medical staff confirmed that she has an ectopic pregnancy and will need surgery to have her fallopian tubes taken out. Emma woke up from the procedure so devastated that she had lost another baby.

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However, the doctors later conferred that it was not an ectopic pregnancy, but they found a blockage in her fallopian tubes. After this was taken out and cleared, they saw that she had four babies in her uterus and that her pregnancy could proceed as normal.

"I still couldn't believe it as I was taken off to see a specialist in multiple pregnancies," Emma said. 

Then Her Babies "Vanished"

However, weeks after the surgery, the mother felt something else was happening to her body, and she started bleeding again. Following a visit to the doctor, Emma was told that she "passed the pregnancy" and shared the heartache of another baby loss on Facebook with her friends and family.

However, one night, Emma dreamt of her grandfather, who told her that she was still pregnant. Going by this hunch, the mum insisted to Joe that they should get another scan at the hospital. True enough, the scans showed that she was still carrying two babies in her uterus. This was on the 12th week of her pregnancy.

According to the doctors, Emma experienced a rare phenomenon called vanishing twin syndrome not once but two times. She lost one baby each from a set of identical twins, leaving her with two non-identical twin babies who would survive a healthy pregnancy at 37 weeks.

Emma gave birth to Aurora Azalea and Ophelia Lili in October 2021 and joined their older sister, Mollie Rose, 12 years old.

What is Vanishing Twin Syndrome?

According to the American Pregnancy Association, vanishing twin syndrome happens when a twin or a multiple "disappears" in the womb following a miscarriage. This pregnancy phenomenon has been recognized since 1945 and is estimated to occur in roughly 21 to 30 percent of multiple pregnancies during the first trimester.

What happens in cases of vanishing twin syndrome is that the other twin absorbs the fetal tissues in the miscarriage. The syndrome's cause is unknown, but experts assume it may be linked to chromosomal abnormalities or improper cord implantation.

Following some bleeding, cramping, pelvic pain, and decreasing hormone levels to indicate a pregnancy loss, the prognosis for the surviving twin and the mother's health is usually good. Sometimes, however, vanishing twin syndrome may also occur during the second or third trimester, raising the risk for both mom and the surviving babies.

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