Babies in the News: The Non-Twin Twins

by Valorie Delp | More from this Blogger

Here's a riddle for you: Two babies are born just one minute a part. They are not twins and one baby is three weeks older than the other--well, technically speaking. Yet to their parents, this brother and sister duo will always feel like a set of twins. Confused? This is the true story for one set of "non-twins"--Harriet and Thomas Millineux.

At seven weeks gestation, mom knew something wasn't right and went to the hospital to learn that she was carrying twins, but one had died and was being reabsorbed into her body. This is also known as vanishing twin syndrome and doctors think that it is moderately common. At this scan there was another 'blob' detected, but it was assumed that this was leftover tissue and Mrs. Millineux was told to return to the hospital in two weeks.

Superfetation

At her next appointment that little blob had grown into a baby. . .only three weeks younger than the one she was already carrying! Hers is a rare case of superfetation--a condition in which a mother releases an egg for fertilization every month despite being pregnant. This could've meant that technically, she could have become pregnant with a new baby every single month during her entire pregnancy.

Superfetation is extremely rare. The last recorded case that I could find was in 2006. I suspect that until relatively recently (within the last decade), when sonogram and imaging equipment became much more advanced, superfetation was simply unheard of.

Twins (or rather 'non-twins') can also be created when a mother releases two eggs during one cycle and they are fertilized separately. just about the only way that you would know this had occurred however, is if the eggs were fertilized by separate men. Technically the resulting babies would be half-siblings. (This is known as superfecundation.)

Situations like this are starting to challenge our traditional definition of twins. Certainly, regardless of whether or not the Mellineux siblings are technically twins, they seem like it to their parents and no doubt telling people they are is just much easier to explain!

Learn more about Valorie Delp

Hello everybody! My name is Valorie and I am one busy lady! When I'm not writing or editing for families, I am busy trying to get my brood of 5 in line.

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