In rare birth, identical twins born 18 days apart after live-saving surgery

Baby Logan Gorveatt, pictured here, was born 18 days after his identical twin, Link. Doctors predicted the Kirkland, Wash., boys would be born four months apart, but both babies ended up being born premature. (Photo courtesy Holli Gorveatt via Fox11Online.com)

Link Gorveatt, pictured here, was born extremely premature at 23 weeks old on Tuesday, Sept. 29. He and his twin brother, Logan, suffered from twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, a condition marked by a shared placenta in utero. (Photo courtesy KOMO/CNN Newsource via My Fox 28)

The Washington twins who doctors predicted would be born four months apart after sharing a single placenta have both now entered the world, and the babies and their mother are doing well, Fox 11 reported.

Holli Gorveatt, of Kirkland, Wash., gave birth to her first twin, Link, on Tuesday, Sept. 29, and she and her husband, Nick Gorveatt, welcomed their second twin, Logan, on Saturday.

Link was born extremely premature at 23 weeks old, weighing 1 pound 2 ounces. Doctors initially predicted the twins would be born four months apart, but Logan was also born premature. Fox11Online.com did not report Logan’s birth weight.

The Gorveatt twins had twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome in utero, which occurs when the blood supply of one twin moves to the other’s via the babies’ shared placenta. One twin loses blood and is born smaller, while the other one gains it and stands the risk of suffering cardiac failure due to high blood volume, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Mild cases of the condition usually result in the birth of both twins, while more severe cases typically lead to the death of at least one infant, according to the NIH.

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My Fox 28 Columbus reported earlier this month that Dr. Martin Walker at EvergreenHealth Medical Center, in Kirkland, corrected twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome in utero by separating the twins’ blood vessels.

Holli Gorveatt went into labor with Link one week after the procedure, Fox11Online.com reported.

Holli described being pre- and post-partum at the same time as “surreal.”

Nick Gorveatt told Fox11Online.com that his wife and their newborns are faring well despite the twins’ prematurity, as well as Link’s heart and lung problems. The news stations did not report whether Logan was suffering from similar health issues.

Fox11Online.com reported that the Gorveatts are facing growing medical bills as Holli remains on bed rest, and they have two other children who need child care. They are accepting donations via a GoFundMe page.

Click for more from Fox11Online.com and MyFox28Columbus.com.