Multiple pregnancies and health risks
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As a mom of twins, I always try to keep myself updated on the latest news about multiples.
American researchers gathered data on multiple births in 2004 and reported in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology the following statistics:
- 139,494 babies were born of multiple pregnancies
- 132,219 babies were born as twins
- 6750 babies were born as triplets
- 439 babies were born as quadruplets
- 86 babies were born as quintuplets or higher order multiples.
The high rates of multiple births in the US are attributed to assisted reproductive therapies (ART). 35% of pregnancies and 34% of births made possible by ART resulted in multiple pregnancies in 2003. ART accounted for 44% of triplets and 16% of twins who were born in the US in 2003.
With multiple pregnancy comes risks to the mother and the babies. The main risks are preterm labor/delivery and low birth weights. The higher the order of multiplicity, the higher the risk. Compared to twins, triplets tend to be born on the average 3.5 weeks early. For quadruplets, it’s 5.4 weeks on the average. However, very premature births occur. In 2003, 5.6% of twins, 16.9% of triplet births and 28.3% of quadruplet births resulted in delivery before 29 weeks of pregnancy.
The health risks of very premature babies who survive are numerous and include:
- low birth weights
- congenital heart defects
- respiratory problems
- hearing and vision impairment
- cognitive impairment.
For the mothers of multiples, the following risks are significantly increased:
- gestational diabetes
- pregnancy-induced hypertension (preeclampsia)
- incompetent cervix
- premature rupture of membranes
- excessive bleeding during labor
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