HOUSTON -- Doctors knew the infant delivered two weeks ago was just one of several babies Nkem Chukwu carried in her womb. But none knew the girl was just one of a remarkable -- and historic -- eight.
Nkem Chukwu delivered her 2-week-old daughter's five sisters and two brothers Sunday to complete the first known surviving set of octuplets. They ranged from 11 ounces to nearly two pounds, and all were in critical condition after birth."We're very hopeful all of the babies will survive, but they're critically ill newborns and we can't say for sure everything will be OK," said Dr. Patti Savrick, a pediatrician at Texas Children's Hospital.
The first girl was 12 weeks premature, and the others were 10 weeks early. The survival rate for babies born so young is 85 percent, doctors said.
The babies were whisked one by one to Texas Children's from the operating room at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital. About 30 medical personnel were involved in the 45-minute Caesarean section.
Seven of the babies were on ventilators Monday to help them breathe, and all eight will likely remain hospitalized for two or three months.
Dr. Leonard Weisman, chief neonatal specialist at Texas Children's, said he will watch for lung and heart problems over the next few days. After that, metabolic problems and infections are a danger.
The babies are critically ill, but they are currently all stable, Weisman said this morning on the NBC "Today" show.
Nkem Chukwu, a Nigerian native who lives in Houston with her husband, Iyke, could be out of the hospital by week's end. Her husband, a respiratory therapist, was not present for the deliveries but has seen the babies since then, doctors said Monday.
"He's very excited about the pregnancy," said Dr. Brian Kirshon, a specialist in high-risk births and one of three doctors who delivered the babies.
As a result of drugs taken to forestall labor, Nkem Chukwu required surgery Monday morning to stop internal bleeding. Kirshon called the bleeding, a side effect of the drugs, a "generalized ooze" from her abdominal wall.
"It was something not anticipated," Kirshon said, but her condition was "stabilizing."