Most people consider giving birth to one healthy baby a miracle. Imagine, then, giving birth to not one, not two, but five babies all at once. Alexandra Kinova did exactly that in 2013, when she became the first woman to give birth to quintuplets in the history of the Czech Republic.
Quintuplets in the Czech Republic
In 2013, 23-year-old Alexandra Kinova and her husband Antonin of the Czech Republic were excitedly awaiting the birth of their second child. The couple already had a son together and were very happy to be expanding their family.
The couple was surprised to find out during Alexandra’s second ultrasound that they were going to be having twins. They then began planning to turn their family of three into a family of five. The couple was completely unaware of just how dramatically their lives were about to change.
Her stomach was growing at an unusually quick rate, prompting doctors to do a few more ultrasounds. After several images and medical opinions, the doctors revealed that she was having four babies.
As if that was not shocking enough, one month later the doctors finally spotted a fifth, who had been hiding behind the others. Alexandra and Antonin Kinova were having quintuplets [1].
Read More: Woman gave birth to a baby the size of a ‘toddler’
Five Healthy Babies
Alexandra gave birth to her quintuplets via cesarean section. This is common practice with multiples, because it is the safest way to ensure that there are no complications. According to the doctors at Prague’s Institute for the Care of Mother and Child, the whole process went very smoothly.
The hospital made sure to have a significantly larger staff on hand for the birth of the quintuplets, and in total there were forty present for the delivery. That number included two nurses per baby [1].
Following the birth, doctors held the mother and her babies in the intensive care unit to monitor them. The entire family, however, appeared to be in very good condition.
Alexandra gave birth to four boys and one girl. The boy’s names are Deniel, Michael, Alex, and Martin, and the girl’s name is Terezka [2].
The only thing that didn’t go to plan the day the quintuplets were born, unfortunately, was that Antonin was not present. He was on a train back home when his wife went into labour, and did not make it.
“I was crying all the way since I feared I would not manage it,” he said [2].
How Common are Quintuplets?
Not surprisingly, quintuplets are extremely rare. In 2017, the National Vital Statistics’ US Report revealed that there had been 49 births of quintuplets or greater in the country. Usually, multiples are a result of assisted reproductive techniques. For this reason, there is about a one in 60 million chance of the spontaneous conception of quintuplets [3].
Quintuplets can be fraternal (polyzygotic) or identical (monozygotic) or a combination of both. Polyzygotic means there were five unique egg/sperm combinations, and monozygotic means there was one fertilized egg that split into two or more embryos.
Quintuplets can be all male, all female, or more commonly, a combination. Monozygotic quintuplets will always be of the same sex. Monozygotic quintuplets, however, are so rare that it is difficult to assess the odds of that happening [3].
Alexandra Kinova did not use fertility treatments, making her story significantly more rare. What’s more, officials believe that her children are the first set of quintuplets to be born in the history of the Czech Republic [1].
“In this specific country, we have been actively recording statistics of birth ever since 1949 and in that time, there has never once been a mention of quintuplets. As a matter fact, quintuplets are birthed in the Czech Republic once in every 480 years on an average”, said Dr. Alena Mechurova. [4]
Where are They Now?
Since 2013, the Kinova family has been happily raising their expanded family of eight. Both Alexandra and Antonin’s mothers moved in with the family to help them, and the community has provided them with an incredible amount of support.
When their story got out, people from all over the world were reaching out to help them in some way. Eventually, the government agreed to give the family assistance and sent them a nanny. With six children, however, this was not enough.
Unfortunately, the Czech government was not able to provide any further support to the family. Despite this, Alexandra and Antonin have continued to raise their family with the love and support from their family and friends [1].
Today, all five children are healthy and happy. The couple loves their not-so-little family very much, but there is one thing they are certain of: they will not be having any more children.
Keep Reading: Trans man who gave birth to healthy baby boy opens up about pregnancy as a man
Sources:
- ‘This Mother Was Preparing For Her Twins But Then Everything Changed’ House Diver. Published February 23, 2020.
- ‘Czech woman gives birth to country’s first quintuplets’ BBC. Published June 2, 2013.
- ‘Everything You Need to Know About Quintuplet Multiple Births’ VeryWell Family Pamela Prindle Fierro. Published December 3, 2020.