Twins born just three days before the legal abortion limit are reportedly the most premature ever recorded in Britain.
Mother Claire Weir shared how she and her husband James did not “have a lot of hope” that the twins would survive.
“I’d never heard of twins so small surviving. It didn’t seem possible for one, let alone two”, she said.
Survival
Imogen and Annabelle Weir were born at 23 weeks and four days. Imogen weighed 1lb 1/2 oz at birth, her sister just 15.5 oz.
The twins were in an “extremely fragile state” and attached to incubators to help them with breathing. They remained in hospital for four months after being born.
Claire said: “The consultant told us that if the girls had been born just two years ago they wouldn’t have survived – that’s how fast medical technology is advancing.”
Progress
Despite doctors’ fears that the twins would not survive, Claire and James remained hopeful.
“We wanted to give our children a chance. We knew we had to try”, she said.
Now almost a year later, the twins are back home and doing well.
The twins’ progress has been described as “truly incredible” by the Twins and Multiple Births Association, which has provided support to the Weir family.
‘Living proof’
Last November, a mum called for a change to the abortion limit after her son Ollie was born at 23 weeks and went on to defy all doctors’ expectations.
Deborah Jackson said: “He’s living proof a baby can survive being born at 23 weeks. Babies are dying unnecessarily and should get the chance to fight.
“It is legal to abort a baby at the same stage as Ollie which distresses me greatly.”
It is currently legal in Great Britain to abort children up to 24 weeks, or up to term if it is believed that the baby will be born with a disability.