Over 70 Days of Intensive Care in Incubator
Possibility of Difficulty in Celebrating 'Complete Set 100 Days'
The couple Kim Jun-hyung and Sa Gong Hye-ran, who made headlines for giving birth to the first naturally conceived quintuplets in Korea, shared an update on their quintuplets.
According to Yonhap News on the 8th, Kim Jun-young (31), a high school teacher in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province and father of the quintuplets, and Sa Gong Hye-ran (30), who works in educational administration at a school in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, welcomed three boys and two girls on September 20. The babies were named Sae-him, Sae-chan, Sae-gang, Sae-byeol, and Sae-bom. While quintuplets themselves are rare and attracted attention, the babies of Mr. Kim and Ms. Sa Gong drew even greater interest as the first case of naturally conceived quintuplets in Korea.
Seoul St. Mary's Hospital announced that on September 20th, three boys and two girls, quintuplets, were born healthy. The photo shows the ultrasound image of the quintuplets. Photo by Seoul St. Mary's Hospital
The babies were born before reaching 27 weeks in their mother's womb and weighed less than 1 kg each. Like other premature infants, the quintuplets are receiving intensive care for over 70 days in incubators at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital due to immature lungs, heart issues, and other complications.
Ms. Sa Gong, who is currently on leave, lives in Dongducheon and travels about 1 hour and 20 minutes one way every day to visit the babies. Mr. Kim, who is working, visits the babies once during the weekdays and on weekends.
Mr. Kim explained, "The boys now weigh between 2.3 and 2.5 kg. The fourth child, a daughter, weighs 1.7 kg, and the youngest daughter has almost surpassed 2 kg. To be discharged, they need to meet several conditions such as successful feeding and maintaining spontaneous breathing for 48 hours. The firstborn, who weighs 2.4 kg, will likely be discharged soon." However, he added that the fourth and youngest still need more observation and expressed regret, saying, "It might be difficult to celebrate their 100th day outside the hospital as a complete family."
Mr. Kim and Ms. Sa Gong experienced anxious moments during the pregnancy, but there were also critical times after birth. Mr. Kim said, "The youngest underwent intestinal and heart surgeries due to perforation about two weeks after birth, and the fourth child had similar surgeries about a month after birth. The babies were so small that I was scared and cried a lot." He added, "Now, none of the babies have illnesses, and we are waiting for them all to grow up healthy."
Mr. Kim said, "We have received a lot of support from companies and local governments," and added, "The babies attracted a lot of attention just by being born, and I hope they can have a positive influence in life going forward as much as their birth did." However, he pointed out, "Multiple births cannot be covered by fetal insurance, so institutional support for this is necessary. Expert consulting and systematic educational material support are also needed for those who experience premature birth."
He also mentioned that parenting advice from Captain Kim Jin-su and Major Seo Hye-jung, who made headlines in 2021 for giving birth to quintuplets, was a great help. Mr. Kim said, "They said raising quintuplets requires more determination than expected, but seeing the babies, they are so cute and lovely. I hope our babies get discharged soon, grow up, and play happily."
At the same time, Mr. Kim said, "Although we unintentionally had quintuplets, I am proud. We are currently inexperienced parents, but we want to prepare well and raise them healthily and well."
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