text: NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Doctors on Long Island performed the first-ever operation on triplets born with a rare skull condition. 
   
   In January, the Howard triplets — Hunter, Jackson and Kaden — underwent surgery at Stony Brook University Hospital to repair a condition called craniosynostosis, where their skulls did not form properly. 
   
   “You could tell that their heads were a little bit malformed,” their mother, Amy Howard, 38, of Center Moriches, said. “It was really extremely scary thinking about your 8- or 9-week-old baby going through surgery.” 
   
   Craniosynostosis occurs in 1 in 2,000 births. 
   
   But doctors said the chance of this occurring in triplets is one in 500 trillion. It’s particularly unusual because they are not all identical. 
   
   “We worked out the probability of maybe on in 500 trillion to see a set of triplets the looked like these three,” Dr. David Chesler, Stony Brook Medicine, Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery said. 
   
   The condition is not only a cosmetic issue but could restrict brain growth. It’s not uncommon, but in triplets it’s extraordinarily rare — only two of them are identical. 
   
   Doctors at Stony Brook explained that the children’s skull fused too early in utero — that’s supposed to happen later in life. Their growing brains then pushed their skulls into abnormal shapes. 
   
   “When you look from the top he has an almost almond of wedge shaped head, that’s now gone. Three months later it’s nice and round,” Dr. Chesler said. 
   
   The babies will have to wear helmets for the next few months as they recover, but then they will lead normal lives. 
   
   “They don’t mind the helmets, the surgery went great, I don’t even think they really were in too much pain,” Howard said. 
   
   The new parents are grateful their boys got a life changing head start. 
   
   “That was my main concern, was it going to cause brain damage, or I was worried about his eye sight, but it all turned out great,” Howard said. 
   
   Already the boys are all smiles and full of life. 
   
   Kaden is described as the laid back one, Hunter the talker and Jackson is the tough one. 
   
   The Howards said the triplets were conceived without the help of fertility drugs. ||||| Get the latest from TODAY Sign up for our newsletter 
   
   Amy and Mike Howard went from a family of two to five in a matter of nine months. Then, their babies made medical history. 
   
   Hunter, Jackson and Kaden appear to be the first-known case of triplets all born with craniosynostosis, a rare birth defect in which the bones in a newborn’s skull fuse together too early. They were just 11 weeks old when the trio underwent surgery to correct the condition. 
   
   “It was scary,” Amy Howard, 38, of Center Moriches, New York, told TODAY. 
   
   “I was very freaked out,” added Mike Howard, 41. “Any time you have to put the baby [in an operating room], it’s a little crazy.” 
   
   Amy found out she was carrying triplets last spring during a routine checkup. The sonogram tech found one fetus, then another and then paused. “Hold on a second,” she said before announcing there was a third. 
   
   The triplets were born on Oct. 22, 2016. Courtesy Howard family 
   
   The triplets were conceived without fertility treatments: “I think we just got lucky,” Mike said, recalling that his first reaction at the news was “Holy [expletive]. I was kind of a little bit in shock.” 
   
   Amy remembers hysterically crying: “I was terrified. It took me a little bit of time to get used to the idea, to be honest.” 
   
   The triplets — all boys — were born last October. Hunter and Jackson are identical twins, while Kaden is their fraternal brother. Within days, doctors noticed there was something going on with their skulls. Kaden’s head was a triangle shape with a pointy forehead, while Jackson and Hunter had skulls that protruded in the back. 
   
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   Jackson's head before the surgery. "Jackson could not lay on his head... he'd always have to have his head to the side because his skull was protruding so much from the back," his mom said. Courtesy Stony Brook Medicine 
   
   All three boys were diagnosed with craniosynostosis, which can limit brain growth. It affects about one in 2,500 births. 
   
   Dr. David Chesler, a pediatric neurosurgeon at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital who operated on the boys, said he and his team couldn’t find any other reports of triplets all born with craniosynostosis. The trio would all need surgery to correct the problem. 
   
   “Your skull is made up of plates, it’s not a single bone,” Chesler said. If the seams join together too early, “the brain can be put under pressure. … That can be detrimental to the brain, the vision, the life of the child. It’s not imminently life-threatening, but it can cause real consequences down the road.” 
   
   The three separate surgeries took place over two days in January. Chesler made small incisions on each of the boys’ heads and, using an endoscope and a harmonic scalpel, cut out a strip of bone to remove the fused seam. The babies did great and were back home two days after their surgeries, Amy said. 
   
   RELATED: Mom fighting cancer gives birth to 'miracle' quadruplets 
   
   Mike and Amy Howard hold, from left to right, Hunter, Kaden and Jackson. Courtesy Howard family 
   
   For the next six to nine months, they must wear orthotic custom-made helmets 23 hours a day to help mold their skulls. 
   
   “It took them a little bit of time to adjust, but they don’t give me any problems taking them off or putting them back on at all,” Amy said. 
   
   Their head shapes are back to normal, a difference she called “amazing.” 
   
   The Howard triplets, from left to right: Jackson, Hunter and Kaden. Courtesy of The Howard Family 
   
   The couple is still adjusting to life with three boys and three cats. 
   
   “It’s a little chaotic. It’s awesome, I wouldn’t change it for the world, but it’s crazy,” Mike said. 
   
   “The babies want to be picked up all at the same time. It is a little bit hectic, especially around bed time,” Amy added. 
   
   They’d like to have a girl join the family, but aren’t planning to have more kids: “With our luck, we would have another set of triplets,” Mike said. 
   
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target: – Kaden, Hunter, and Jackson Howard were born newsworthy—the Long Island triplets were conceived without fertility drugs, and Hunter and Jackson are identical while Kaden is fraternal. But not long into their young lives, the happy news took a turn. Their heads became noticeably misshapen. Kaden had a pointy forehead and Jackson and Hunter sported protrusions in the back, reports Today. All three were diagnosed with craniosynostosis, a rare birth defect in which a newborn's skull fuses together early, which can impede brain growth. The triplets, born in October 2016, underwent a set of surgeries at just two months of age in January and are all thriving back at home, apparently not even minding their helmets, which they must wear 23 hours a day for the next six to nine months. “Your skull is made up of plates, it’s not a single bone,” says operating surgeon David Chesler of Stony Brook Children's Hospital. If the plates fuse too early, it can "detrimental to the brain, the vision, the life of the child. It’s not imminently life-threatening, but it can cause real consequences down the road.” It occurs just once in every 2,000 births, but doctors put the odds of it occurring in triplets—particularly a set that isn't identical and thus not prone to the exact same malformations—at one in 500 trillion, reports CBS Local. Mom Amy calls their progress "amazing" and their father, Mike, says that while life with three boys and three cats is "crazy," he "wouldn't change it for the world." They say they'd love to have a girl, but aren't planning to try. "With our luck, we would have another set of triplets," Mike says. (One mom ran a half marathon pushing her triplets in a stroller.)