Five sets of twins born within 2.5 weeks at New York hospital: 'Raining twin babies'
Catholic Health’s Mercy Hospital is in the midst of a 'twin-demic' — it 'gives people hope'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Five sets of twins were born within two-and-a-half weeks of each other — setting off an unprecedented "twin-demic" event, according to a New York hospital.
The babies arrived at Catholic Health’s Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre, Long Island, from Dec. 29, 2022 to mid-January 2023.
"In my 24 years at Mercy, this has not happened before," said Swarna Devarajan, M.D., chair of pediatrics and director of neonatology at Mercy Hospital.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}TINY TEXAS TWINS ARE BORN IN TWO DIFFERENT YEARS, COURTESY OF A NEW YEAR
Devarajan is a 30-year veteran of neonatology and has taken care of more than 4,000 babies in her time at the hospital.
Dr. Devarajan is a 30-year veteran of neonatology. She spoke with Fox News Digital about how Catholic Health’s Mercy Hospital has seen multiple sets of twin babies born in a little over two weeks at the facility. (Joseph Lanzetta, Sr.)
"Having four sets of twins in a matter of two weeks — and another a few days later — is just extremely unusual and almost magical. It's just such good news and makes everyone happy. It’s not common," Devarajan said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jessica Schulman, an R.N. who cared for some of the twins in Mercy’s Mother/Baby Unit, described the two-week period as "a little bit of light."
"There’s so much focus on the sad, unfortunate stories, like COVID or people passing away," Schulman said.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"This is something very happy and uplifting. It’s new life. It gives people hope," she added.
Twin births account for approximately 3% of live births in the United States, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Top, left to right: Maureen O’Connell, RN; Rochelle Duponte, unit secretary; Valerie Russo, RN; Marion Weber, RN; Lisa Pino, RN and assistant nurse manager in NICU; Karen McKenna, RN; Jane Rizzacassa, RN. Sitting, left to right: Jessica Schulman, RN; Dr. Swarna Devarajan; Dr. Jordana Hannam. (Alida Almonte-Giannini)
A total of 14 sets of twins were born at Mercy Hospital in all of 2022, according to hospital records.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}And there were only 10 twin births at the hospital in 2021, Mercy confirmed to Fox News Digital.
Two sets of identical twins — one of boys, one of girls — and two sets of fraternal boy twins were delivered at 32, 34, 35 and 36 weeks.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The boys spent time in Mercy Hospital’s Level III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), while the girls were able to go home a few days after they were born.
The fifth set, boy-girl fraternal twins, were born on Jan. 16 at 37 weeks and reportedly headed home one week later.
Margo and Lucy Hernandez are a pair of twins born during the special time at Catholic Health’s Mercy Hospital in Long Island, New York. (Alida Almonte-Giannini)
Maggie and Stephen Hernandez, parents of twin girls Margo and Lucy, said they did not realize until after their babies were born that they were part of something special.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I think that the staff was all just so excited that there were so many twins," Maggie Hernandez told Fox News Digital.
"Every time we would be walking down the hallway or taking a lap or something, someone would constantly [say], 'Oh, another set of twins.' I think the whole staff was pretty excited about it."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I like to say it’s been raining twin babies."
The Hernandez family were the only ones who did not have to visit their twins in the NICU.
"That was actually a very humbling experience," said Stephen Hernandez, whose brother and wife also had twins just 49 days before his girls were born.
Swarna Devarajan, M.D., is chair of pediatrics and director of neonatology at Mercy Hospital in New York. She's taken care of over 4,000 babies in her time at the hospital. "As a Level III NICU, we are always ready," she said. "That’s what we do." (Joseph Lanzetta, Sr./Alida Almonte-Giannini)
"We had a lot of gratitude, not only for the staff, but for our situation," he said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Out of four sets of beautiful babies, we were lucky that we were the only ones that didn't have to go into the NICU. Because that’s tough."
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Since it's been "raining twin babies," Devarajan said, the hospital had to be prepared to care for the little ones.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dr. Devarajan is shown in the NICU with one of the babies born on Dec. 29. (Joseph Lanzetta, Sr.)
"I didn’t anticipate for them all to come within two-and-a-half weeks, but as a Level III NICU, we are always ready," Devarajan added.
"That’s what we do."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Nationally, twin births had been on a steady decline since 2014, according to a National Vital Statistics Report published in December 2022 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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In 2014, 135,336 twin births were reported — and by 2020 that number had dropped to 112,437, a 7% decrease.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But in 2021, twin births made a jump to 114,161, for an increase of 2%.