Woman With 2 Uteruses Has Fraternal Twins: How Did She Do It?

With a one-in-five million odds of such a pregnancy, two babies from two separate uteruses were delivered at Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater last week as result of a rare medical condition.

Andreea Barbosa, 24, of Clearwater, and husband, Miguel Barbosa, welcomed fraternal twins, Nathan and Natalie Barbosa, on September 15, 2011.

I was shocked to learn I had a baby in each uterus, said Mrs. Barbosa, who has a two-year-old daughter at home. But my husband and I are just so happy that they are here and healthy.

Although, Barbosa was diagnosed four years ago with a rare condition called uterus didelphys, or double uterus, which affects about one in 2,000 women worldwide, according to health experts at Morton.

The condition can often cause infertility, miscarriage, or premature birth for many women, yet, Barbosa delivered her healthy baby boy and girl at 36 weeks by cesarean section.

Baby Nathan was delivered first and weighed in at 5 lbs, 8 oz, and two minutes later, his sister Natalie arrived, weighing 5 lbs, 10 oz, who both join their 2-year-old sister, Izabella.

Uterus didelphys develops in the female fetus before birth and occurs when the two tubes that normally fuse together to form the uterus fail to form, developing into two separate cavities.

Experts say there have only been about 100 reported cases worldwide of women with uterus didelphys, where females are pregnant in both uteruses at the same time.

However, since the condition is so rare, various statistics on the incidents of the unusual pregnancies have been documented.

Barbosa's doctor, Patricia St. John, MD, OB/GYN at Morton Plant Hospital, said that her patient knew the risks that were involved with her pregnancy.

We were thrilled to work with the family and guide them through this unique pregnancy and delivery, St. John said. Because we were aware of her condition, we were able to take special precautions to ensure that both mother and babies would be healthy.

In some cases, a double uterus is never diagnosed and some women don't realize they have the condition even during pregnancy and childbirth.

Symptoms range from unusual pain before or during a period to abnormal bleeding during a period.