Experts say there’s a 1-in-700,000 chance of quadruplets being conceived naturally. But the Delgado quadruplets were even more rare. There were three identical babies sharing one amniotic sack and a single baby in another. Each sack had its own placenta. That made this pregnancy one in a million.
Kayleen was referred to UC Davis Health maternal fetal medicine, a multidisciplinary team at the Sacramento hospital that provides expert high-risk obstetrical care for maternal and fetal conditions, like multiples.
On Nov. 14, Kayleen and Zeke Delgado celebrated the arrival of their identical girls Fern, Jane and Kit, and fraternal brother, Royal. Each baby weighed under 2.5 pounds. Kit was the smallest, tipping the scale at barely 1 pound, 15 ounces.
The babies were rushed to the UC Davis NICU where another team of experts were standing by to receive them. Zeke stayed with the babies while Kayleen recovered from surgery. She visited when she could, every few hours.
“Those first few weeks were tough,” said Kayleen, mother of the quadruplets. “It was an emotional time.”
Yet, the couple was also comforted by the actions of the caring staff.
“We knew our babies were 100% taken care of,” Kayleen said. “The team was so good at communicating with us. We just knew we could trust them.”
The family of eight is now home and adjusting to their new normal.
“We couldn’t have asked for a better outcome,” Kayleen said. “UC Davis took great care of us. We are blessed and grateful.”
