Octuplets born in Bellflower [UPDATED]

A woman has given birth to octuplets at a Kaiser Permanente hospital in Bellflower, hospital officials confirmed today.

Updated at 5:10 p.m.:  Two physicians who helped in the deliveries said they had planned in advance for the C-section deliveries but were expecting only seven babies. They got six boys and two girls.

“My eyes got to be the size of saucers,” Dr. Karen Maples said, when it became obvious there was an eighth child. “We just went on and delivered the babies.”

“The orchestrated delivery went off without a hitch,” added Dr. Harold Henry. “The babies are all doing well and the mom is also doing well. There were no complications from the surgery, to the best of my knowledge.”

Henry said that hospital physicians and their assistants practiced two dry runs ahead of time.  “We planned well, and it was well executed,” he said.

Maples said 46 people were involved in the deliveries.

“It was exciting, a little anxious,” she said. “But we were prepared.” She said the mother should be released in a week but that the babies would probably remain in the hospital for at least two months.

The six boys and two girls were born between 10:43 a.m. and 10:48 a.m, the doctors said. The babies each weighed between 1 pound and 15 ounces to 3 pounds and 4 ounces, the physicians said.

Updated at 5:50 p.m.: Dr. Richard Paulson, director of the fertility program at the USC Medical School, called the event “unbelievably rare. When people use fertility drugs, 80% even then are single births. The vast majority of the others are twins.”

Still, fertility experts consider the birth of more than two kids with fertility medication to be not a medical triumph, but “a serious complication,” Paulson said. “We do not ever intend to give someone octuplets.”

Usually, he said, births of this kind are brought on by fertility medication, not in-vitro fertilization. Often, during the medication, several of the mother’s eggs are fertilized. In most cases, Paulson said, the mother chooses to reduce the number of fertile eggs to two, “to make sure the two remaining babies will have the best chance at having good health. To have all those babies, the mother would choose to have selective reduction. Apparently the mother made the decision to carry all the eight babies to viability.”

Updated at 7:20 p.m.:

At a Monday evening news conference, the team leaders -- Maples, Henry, and Dr. Mandhir Gupta -- beamed like new parents. “It was a truly, truly amazing delivery,” Maples said. “We have been talking about this delivery for weeks on end. That’s why when we discovered the eighth, we were so well prepared.” The doctors will do predawn interviews today with ABC’s “Good Morning America,” CBS’ “Morning Show,” NBC’s “Today” show and CNN. The doctors said the children, born nine weeks  premature, were in incubators in stable condition, as was their mother. The two girls and six boys weighed between 1 pound, 8 ounces and 3 pounds, 4 ounces. Five of the infants are breathing on their own. One has needed some help breathing, while two are attached to respirators.

KCAL Channel 9 reported that the babies were born today and quoted a doctor as saying they were “doing quite well.”

In 1998, the first known set of octuplets was born in the United States. The six girls and two boys were born in Houston. One of the babies later died. The others survived and recently celebrated their 10th birthdays.

Read the full Times story about the octuplets.

-- Sam Quinones, Jeff Gottlieb and Carlos V. Lozano

Comments

[Maggie]

Who says she will be doing this alone?
How do we know weather or not she has friends and family ready, willing and able to help?
How can we decide whats too much for her to handle?
Some people can handle 4,5 6 etc kids with no problem
some people can't handle 1
Come people how would you feel if these things were said about YOU!

[Michelle]

I am sorry I do not find this a blessing. She lives at home in a three bedroom house already has 6 children, no husband, and no job. How is this a blessing!!!!
Who paid for this to happen, who pays the hosital bill on the problems that may follow these kids for the rest of there lives, and who pays to feed and do all the things for these children will need for the next 18 yrs???? Oh yeah all the money she will make from the media who will buy her story and the tv shows she will get. What is wrong with america????

[Kate]

Would some of you feel differently about the situation if you knew the woman had six other children already, no husband, and that she's living with her parents?

[Becky]

You people realize she is a single mother of six. All her children are invitro children. ANd, all 14 children literally have no father, she has no job and no health insurance but someone gave her invitro fertilization? doesnt this raise a red flag? Doctors should have guidelines and standards. This woman should have been evaluated for a mental disorder. She truly believed that she would get her own show like jon and kate plus 8, and endorsments from diaper companies, and wants to sell pictures for 2mill......does she think she is angelina jolie? This woman needs to be hospilitized. SHe is very sick. How will she care for 14 children? who will pay for childcare..... I will tell you who... WE WILL. WE WILL PAY FOR HER FOOD>>>>all becasue some stupid doctor played god and gave a sick woman 8 babies.

[Canadianabby]

This is to go out to "Laquondisha"
Omg at your comment. This country called America is against everything it stands for.. "Land of the living Free?" Nope. Not even a little bit! And as for the recession, you being an American WOULD blame it on everyone else. Thats the problem with Americans, taking the blame for something is like pulling teeth, it sort of makes me laugh. Also, um.. sorry your jealous about Canada's awesome health care system, Government system, public school system, low crime rates, beautiful sites, clean air, loving people and great doctors! You need to get your facts right before you go on a bash other people. Also, apart of being an American is working together, and if that means paying taxes then thats what it means, but sorry that 8 cents of your entire life salary is going to help feed these kids. Selfish selfish American. Get over yourself.

[Transilvania Terror]

What on earth would happen to all 14 of her kids if she and her parents died? Guess who would be caring for them then? You guessed it, the rest of us! Actually, we support them all now. Doctors are bound by, "First do no harm." I think having all those kids is socially and economically harmful because she's not working and she has no significant other to help with support. And to have 8 more on top of the 6 she has already, well, that woman has psychological issues! Good grief, give me a break! jmho.

[melissa swart]

So she already has six children and just had 8 more on purpose single and lives with her parents I can only guess that we the hard working people of california will be the ones paying for this one this is why California is in the situation it is in.

[Joshua]

I lived next to a junk yard when I was a kid. They had a dog there and every year this dog would give birth to a bunch of puppies. Every winter most of the puppies would die because the dog couldn't take care of them. When will this dog stop having puppies?

[connie]

This woman obviously has had surgery to look like Angelina Jolie, there is your answer to why she wants so many kids, she is an obsessed fan!!!

[lisa]

it doesnt matter the babies are here i have four and there all babies still i just hope she is extremely strong organized and relaxed no matter what because she will need tro be and alot a great help for the babies and the six other chldren i hope everytrhing works out for all of them

[Taren]

I would like to point out that of the other set of octuplets born in the US who lived longer than 14 hours, 7 lived, and all are perfectly fine. Perhaps I'm a tad defensive because I plan on having a fair number of kids as well (not intending 8 at once, but I'd be thrilled it it happened), but I just don't see why anyone is choosing to have a -problem- with someone else's decision to have a lot of kids. That she conceived this many in the first place, was willing to deal with a pregnancy that epic, and then that they were all relatively fine...it's impressive, and if we want to waste energy on caring about this, lets focus on that, rather than on her financial status, or that she didn't decide to kill some of her babies.

[joe the plumber]

This woman is quite bright, she figured how to milk the system. Now she is cared for comfortably by our tax dollars with the help of all these children. Is it really a wonder why we are in such a mess, each individual has to take responsibility for our society as a whole...

[ashley daniel]

she is not married, lives with her mom and her mom is already rasing her first six that where born the same way. she has no father for these children and her only help is her mother and what the goverment will give her. now she has eight more, with no job. what is she thinking or the doctors, she is only 25 years old with 14 kids not married no job or home of her own. these are the questions that should be asked and answered before all of this took place, she should of been thankful to have the first six and go get a job and make a home for them, before having eight more.

[jessie]

why does every one think that its wrong to have babies. i know alot of people who cant have babies. hey i was adopted. Go Life!

[carissa]

who says poor single people cant have what rich maried people have. i think it is great for her to have this many kids. she is vary blessed. god bless her and the family the rest of u negative people need to get a life. she pays taxes also.

[God]

This woman now has what 10 kids and no husband? I think even Murphy Brown would ask "What were you thinking?!" Now, apparently, she is asking for help. what a nimrod. With all the kids needing homes on this planet, why would anyone want to create more? With all the violence and poverty in this world, why would anyone want to have one child, let alone 10!

This lady thought she could break some sort of record and cash in, or maybe she would appeal to "decent" people out there to "help" her. How long do we need to help her? I'm betting at least 18 years, assuming none of them land in jail or on welfare.

[God Again]

I'd like to point out to all you congratulators and well wishers that this woman is divorced, unemployed, unskilled, this was not an accident, she did not "need" these kids to "complete her" and her own mother thinks it was stupid.

So next time you complain about high taxes, increases in medical coverage, or people milking the system think back to this idiot.

I'd really like to hear her justification for having moer kids as opposed to adopting. As for names how about freeloader 1-8...

Oh wait, that's right they're all going to grow up to be persident! My bad.

[janice]

I live in CA and hear the daily news updates on this situation. The mother doesn't seem to have a grip on reality and her own mother says the daughter is wrong. I have seen pictures of the house and it is a mess and already very crowded. I feel sorry for the all the children. I hope someone sues the fertility clinic and makes them pay the costs to raise these children.

[Natalie Rankin]

i just hope the next time this lady makes the news ..it isnt because something has happened to one of these precious babies. She seems to have several screws lose.

[deb]

i would like to know how she paid for this procedure to start off with. she is the most stupid woman yet. babies are a gift from god. they are not like animals rasied to start a circus and that is what she is doing. i feel if she can not support those children they should be put up for addoption. she knew exactly what she was doing. she knew she could not support those children. i feel she has violated some form of ethics. this website she has so people can donate money to her to help support her kids. what a bunch of bull. i call it lasziness califronia is having enough problems as it is and so is the rest of the united states. so we should help her suport her childbren if she can not support those children give them a home they deserve. and not wit a con artisit mother .

[Marla Johnston]

I wish the mother good luck with the kids. The only thing that is a concern is she already had 6 children, doesn't work, can't support them on her own, she's a single mother. That's what all the uproar is about. My tax money and other's tax money is going to support this family. Fine if people want to have many children, more power to them but they should be able to support them on their own without assistance, or at least have supported the children they already have without assistance before having more.

[Angela]

I think she wanted publicity & her 5 minutes of fame, not to mention hoping to collect money from people to help support the family. This world is over populated enough. Do you want Fame that much that you have to go to this extreme? This is ridiculous. Well, you got what you wanted...being in the public eye. It won't last long.

[Lorraine]

It is utterly ridicilous that a single mother with no job and no kind of support financially to take care of what she has already to do such a thing. She wants attention and financial gain with having these kids. I was in the same hospital when she delivered these kids. All i seen was the media at the front of the hospital. You hear all these folks talking about we need to give i can't take care of myself right now like a lot of others in this country. What i think is she needs to go back to the irresponsible Dr. that implanted her and let him take care of these kids. We were in recession before she got pregnant . The state needs to make a point and take her kids and give them a home where someone is responsible enough to take care of these kids. Ty Pennington you say build them a home that is what she wants handouts. And it was on the local news with her publicist saying people are calling with threats my personal opinion is that it is all made up who has there cell phones listed no one so how did they get your cell phone number come on people THINK it is all a game of finances. IT is just like the goverment giving the auto comapnies money and letting the ceo's give themselves Bonuses for the company's collaspe. You want to reward the wrong and punish all of us that has to take care of these kids. I am with DR. PHIL she needs MENTAL HEALTH. The kids that belong to others that can't take care of there kids the state takes so what's the difference in this case when she knew. Call on the church that she believes in that says abortion is so wrong when you know that you can't take care of kids.

[Annie]

You should only have as many childern as you can afford to take care of. I hope they have good jobs. If not, California will have family of at least 15 to pay for.

[April]

If she want to spend her money having the kids more power to her, long as she dont bring them to my house to babysit for her. I have 4 of my own, and I am not married, so freakin what, I take care of everyone single and without aid from the state, and guess what its my business. For all those hanging the girl before knowing the story, she has a little money to provide for them and she is in school to receive her Master's Degree. How many of you talking bad about her can say that about yourselves. Plus if you are that concerned about her business, go help her then you can voice your opinion.