In an extremely rare case believed to have happened just 10 times worldwide, a woman has given birth to two girls conceived 15 days apart.

Joice Carvalho Vieira, 22, gave birth to two healthy girls in the Brazilian state of Sergipe on 20th March.

Her pregnancy is believed to have been an extremely rare case of ‘superfoetation’, the formation of a foetus while another foetus is already present in the uterus.

Joice and her husband learnt of the remarkable case during an ultrasound carried out on 11th February.

Health professionals informed the couple that Joice’s pregnancy was not a common twin pregnancy and that the babies had a difference in development of 15 days.

Joice told news site F5 News at the time: “One is 36 weeks old, and the other is 34 weeks old. According to medical reports, there are approximately 10 cases of this worldwide, making it an extremely rare case.”

Despite Joice’s pregnancy being considered risky, Jannie Elizabeth and Maria Leticia were born healthy by caesarian section at 41 weeks and are currently doing well.

Joice is delighted to have spent her first Mother’s Day (9th May in Brazil) as a mum of two, as she previously lost a daughter aged one year and three months in 2018.

Her previous daughter was born with oesophageal atresia and passed away during post-operative care following surgery.

Joice said of her recent successful pregnancy: “God was present the whole time. We took care the whole time, but, other than that, everything was relaxed. They were born perfect.”

Another recent case of superfoetation involved Wiltshire mum Rebecca Roberts, 39, who gave birth to a boy and a girl conceived about three weeks apart in September last year.