How many sextuplets are there in the world

But conceiving sextuplets without the use of fertility treatments is extremely rare. In fact, the odds of giving birth to sextuplets spontaneously are one in 4. Sextuplet births are extremely rare. At least 80 and possibly as many as births in the world have resulted from a pregnancy involving 6 babies. A sextuplet or higher pregnancy will likely go to weeks gestation or earlier.

Around births in the world have resulted from a pregnancy involving 7 babies. Although many septuplets do not survive to birth or beyond infancy, at least 3 sets of septuplets, and possibly 1 more, did result in 7 live births where the babies survived beyond infancy. If some of these many eggs are fertilized at the same time, they can result in multiple babies, according to the University of Rochester. In vitro fertilization IVF can also result in a multiple pregnancy, but this is less common today than in the past.

That's because, in the past, the chances of becoming pregnant with IVF were quite low, so doctors would transfer multiple embryos to the uterus to increase the chances of pregnancy, Hershlag said. But as researchers optimized IVF techniques, they increased the likelihood that each embryo transferred would result in a pregnancy. In general, almost all younger women treated at reputable fertility centers will have a single embryo transferred, he said. The reduction in embryos transferred during IVF has contributed to a decline in triplets and other higher-order births in the United States; from to , the rate of triplets and other higher-order births in the U.

And a study found that fertility drugs alone are responsible for a greater proportion of high-order births triplets or more , compared with IVF. Hershlag stressed that multiple pregnancies are associated with a higher risk of complications than single pregnancies, including an increased risk of preterm birth. This is not an achievement," Hershlag said. The birth of sextuplets has only been recorded approximately times worldwide and few sets survived in full.

Currently, the U. Twins are the most common form of multiple birth and can occur naturally once in every 90 births.

The odds increase for triplets and other multiple births, according to Multiple Births Canada. In recent years, the incidence of multiple births in Canada is on the rise due to the increased use of fertility drugs. It is estimated that 60 per cent of triplets, 90 per cent of quadruplets and 99 per cent of quintuplets are the result of these treatments.

Below is a timeline of some of the more publicized multiple births in Canada and across the world. The babies were born at just 25 weeks into the mother's pregnancy. Two later died. July 28, In Saskatoon, the Gilmour family welcomed Canada's eighth set of quintuplets with the assistance of infertility treatments.

Originally, six babies were conceived, but one died in the womb, leaving only five.