News from February 16

Here is the information that I shared following our February 16 appointment:

On Tuesday, February 16, Lisa and I went to see a doctor from the University of Chicago to deal with some “concerns” that our doctor had with the twins. These concerns came after an ultrasound on February 1. Twin A had some “bright spots” in the pelvic area that could possibly be cysts on the kidneys; twin B had enlarged kidneys. We had been hoping and praying that all those concerns would be cleared up by the time we went in for this more in-depth ultrasound. We also decided to find out the gender(s) of the twins – kidney problems are more common in boys, so some fears would be alleviated if they were boys; girls tend to be more resilient and less prone to major disorders… so we were prepared for good news either way.

As the ultrasound technician studied twin A, we were pleased to hear good news. He didn’t see any problems with the kidneys. The heart, brain, and other major organs looked good. Toward the end of the exam, he gave us the news that twin A is a little girl!

The study of twin B found similar results. Overall, there was good news – first and foremost, another girl – and likely identical twins! We found out that twin B also has what’s called a “horseshoe kidney” – this basically means that the two kidneys are conjoined. We’re told that this condition doesn’t cause any kinds of problems.

Sadly, we heard discouraging news when we met with the specialist. He noted that two weeks earlier twin A had weighed 8 oz. and twin B was 10 oz. From this ultrasound, they found that twin A weighed 10 oz and twin B was 15 oz. The presence of lots of amniotic fluid around twin B and very little amniotic fluid around twin A confirmed the difference in size between the two. This all likely indicates that they have “Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome.” This basically means that one twin is getting too much nutrition and one twin is getting too little. If left untreated, we’ve found that there is an 80-100% mortality rate for both twins.

Thankfully, there is a relatively new (about twelve year old) treatment available. A doctor in Miami, FL, has created a procedure in which they go into the womb and cauterize some of the blood vessels in the umbilical cord to the larger twin. This reduces the amount of nutrition to the larger twin and causes a more even distribution of nutrition to both twins. We’re told that in 85% of cases at least one twin survives; in 50-60% of cases both twins survive; in 15% of cases neither twin survives. Although we’d love a near 100% success rate for both twins surviving, we’re still thankful for the higher rate of healthy delivery.

The plan right now is to go to the University of Chicago on Thursday, February 25, for another ultrasound with a few more sets of eyes inspecting the data. They will then determine whether we will go to Cincinnati or Miami to have this surgery – it’s only done in four cities in the whole country. For the smaller twin to survive, we should really have the surgery done by 24 weeks and Lisa is going on 22 weeks right now. We’re thankful for the prayers offered so far and are praying right now that both twins would have enough nutrition to help their little bodies survive. We pray that doctors – and we! – would have wisdom to know what’s best for these little girls. We continue to cling to God’s great faithfulness, which gives us “strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, blessings all mine with ten thousand beside.”