
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, June 18, 1993                   TAG: 9306180051
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA                                LENGTH: Medium

CANADIAN TRIPLETS BORN 45 DAYS APART DELAY GAVE 2 HIGHER SURVIVAL CHANCE

A woman delivered the first of her triplets, a fragile 2-pound, 1-ounce boy, on April 30. His brother and sister came a remarkable 45 days later.

Dr. Keith Williams, who oversaw the two-stage delivery, called it a "medical miracle" that shows babies can have a higher chance of survival through delayed delivery, which gives them more time to develop and gain weight.

It is the second time on record that days have elapsed between triplets' births, said officials at Grace Hospital, where the babies were born. A case in Baltimore in 1991 involved an 11-day delay.

In both cases, the babies were delivered vaginally rather than by Caesarean section.

Joanne March, a 29-year-old dental hygienist from Kelowna in south-central British Columbia, was admitted to a hospital in Kelowna on March 24, about 22 weeks into her pregnancy.

She was transferred to Grace Hospital, ordered to stay in bed and given drugs to prevent labor.

On April 30, Clayton was born 10 weeks early. March's labor then was stopped and the regimen of strict bed rest and medication resumed, Williams told reporters.

Doctors decided Monday to deliver the two remaining babies three weeks before full term. March delivered a boy who weighed 4 pounds, 1 ounce, and a girl weighing 4 pounds, 13 ounces.

Clayton has lung problems related to his premature birth but weighs more than 3 pounds. The other infants were "a little bit premature, but they're both fine," hospital spokesman Ted Haugen said.

by CNB