Miracle twins given just 10% chance of survival now thriving thanks to hero medics

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A pair of miracle twins have defied the odds after being given a 10 per cent chance of survival - before they were even born.

Mum Sally Kynoch, from Moray, was over halfway through her pregnancy in December 2023, when she was transferred from Aberdeen Maternity Hospital to Glasgow where medics confirmed her unborn babies had stage 4 twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS). The rare condition occurs when twins share one placenta and can cause death if one twin gives away more blood than it receives.

The recipient twin can also receive too much blood and is susceptible to overwork of the heart which can lead to cardiac failure - so Sally was left requiring a risky laser ablation procedure to save her babies lives while they were still in the room.

Tiny sisters Kelsea and Willow were then born in February this year, at just 32 weeks. After four weeks in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, they were able to go home and now, seven months on, they are thriving.

Sally said: "I had such a crazy pregnancy, to be honest, I am still trying to get my head around it. It was such a scary time. I was transferred to Glasgow where the Foetal Medicine Department confirmed we had stage 4 TTTS.

"We were told the babies were extremely poorly and were both going into heart failure. There was no fluid around twin 2 and no bladder could be found. She was really small. Twin 1 had a lot of fluid around her and was noticeably much larger than her sister.

"After discussing possible options with Dr Gibson, we decided to go ahead with laser ablation to seal off some of the blood vessels in the placenta so that both babies receive a more equal supply of blood.

"This came with a lot of potential risks and complications such as preterm delivery, rupture of membranes and complications for the babies.

"But without any treatment, there was only a 10% chance of both twins surviving. Thankfully, the laser ablation was successful.”

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She continued: "The weeks following the surgery were scary. We didn't know what to expect. We didn't know if things would continue to improve or if the excess fluid would return.

“Thankfully everything stayed okay, and our twins Kelsea and Willow were born at 32+5 weeks weighing 3lb6 and 3lb4.

"They needed very little help; they were breathing on their own and were tube-fed for the first 4 weeks. They were looked after in NICU for four weeks in total. Kelsea and Willow stayed in intensive care for 10 days, then were then moved to the special care unit for the remainder of their stay.

“They are now seven months old, and they continue to amaze us every day. They truly are miracles! We are forever grateful for everything that was done to save our twins."