Twins born on different days, months and years – but only 15 minutes apart

Source: USA Today

Twins in California were born just 15 minutes apart, but their birthdays are on separate days, months and years.

Alfredo Antonio Trujillo was delivered first at 11:45 p.m. on New Year's Eve, and his sister Aylin Yolanda Trujillo was born exactly at midnight on New Year's Day.

“It’s crazy to me that they are twins and have different birthdays,” their mother, Fatima Madrigal, said. “I was surprised and happy that she arrived at midnight.”

Aylin was the first baby born at Natividad Medical Center and in Monterey County in 2022, according to a news release by Natividad. The fraternal twins join three older siblings in the Trujillo family, two girls and a boy. Madrigal said her oldest son was excited that one of the babies was a boy, and her family can’t wait to meet them.

Aylin weighed in at 5 pounds, 14 ounces, while big brother Alfredo weighed 6 pounds, 1 ounce.

There are about 120,000 twin births in the USA every year, slightly more than 3% of all births. Twins with different birthdays are rare, and the chance of twins being born in different years is 1 in 2 million, according to the news release by Natividad.

Though the incident is rare, it's not the first time twins have been born in separate years. According to CBS Baltimore, MedStar Washington Hospital Center said a woman gave birth to twins near midnight, resulting in one born in 2013 and another in 2014. The twins were born only three minutes apart, one at 11:58 p.m. and the other at 12:01 a.m.

Twins have been born in different centuries as well.

Separated by the stroke of midnight, at least three sets of twins were born on opposite sides of the millennium, according to The Associated Press.  The births occurred in Indianapolis, Fairfax, Virginia, and Berlin.

The arrival of the Trujillo twins in the new year was the source of much excitement around the hospital.

“This was definitely one of the most memorable deliveries of my career,” said Ana Abril Arias, a family doctor at Natividad Medical Group and faculty at Natividad. “It was an absolute pleasure to help these little ones arrive here safely in 2021 and 2022. What an amazing way to start the new year!”