What are MoMo Twins? US woman gives birth, second set of twins in 13 months

A US woman Britney Alba had consecutive pregnancies in a gap of six months. But, what's so special about it? The elementary school teacher from Tuscaloosa, Alabama gave birth to MoMo twins. MoMo twins, also known as monoamniotic-monochorionic twins, share the same placenta, amniotic sac, and fluid. MoMo twins are some of the rarest types of twins, making up less than 1 percent of all births in the United States.

According to the official statement from the University of Alabama at Birmingham Women and Infants Center, where the twins were born Alba gave birth to a set of twins only six months apart after giving birth to her twin boys Luka and Levi.

MoMo twins occur when a single fertilized ovum or egg results in identical twins and these twins share the same placenta and amniotic sac.


How the infants were born?
As per Rachel Sinkey, M.D., assistant professor in the UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, MoMo twin pregnancies have a high risk of fetal complications.

MoMo twin birth is complicated as these twins share everything except the umbilical cords. There is a greater chance that the umbilical cords can become entangled in a single sac.

Due to entanglement, there is a cut down in the blood supply to the fetus. This is the reason why there is a high rate of stillbirths with MoMo twins.

In order to increase the survival of the twins the hospital advised Britney to be admitted into the UAB High-Risk Obstetrics Unit (HRO) between 24 and 28 weeks to receive 24/7 care. The babies were born on October 25, 2022.

After giving the right medical facility to Britney, given the rarity of her pregnancy, she gave birth to Lydia and Lynlee on October 25, 2022. The babies were delivered at 32 weeks’ gestation and admitted to the UAB Regional Newborn Care Unit for continuing care.

“I had to spend a lot of time alone at UAB, but the HRO team took me in and became my family,” Alba said. “It was not an easy journey, but we’re lucky to have had the team and resources at UAB to get us through everything. Now that everyone is home, I feel very blessed and humbled to finally have my whole family home.”