Evaluating Risk Antenatally in Twin Pregnancies

Evaluating Risk Antenatally in Twin Pregnancies – A Pilot Study

Twin pregnancies have an increased rate of complications during pregnancy and after birth, at worst this can result in the death or severe disability of one or both twins. Some of these complications are known to be unique to certain types of twins e.g. identical twins which share a placenta. In other cases, they may relate to premature birth or a reduction in growth of one of the twins, but in some cases factors associated with poor outcomes are not known.

Most research linking mother’s characteristics, behaviours or other factors linked with her pregnancy outcome have been researched in singleton pregnancies. This means that information for those pregnant with twins is often taken from mothers who only have one baby. This study, based in two large UK teaching hospitals, will recruit mothers who have a twin pregnancy, who will be asked to complete a questionnaire three times during their pregnancy. A research midwife will record information from antenatal appointments and ultrasound scans performed routinely, as well as information about the outcome of pregnancy.

This information will help us plan a larger study which will give us more definite information about risk factors for adverse outcome in twin pregnancies. A study like this would mean that mothers with twin pregnancies receive accurate information and have appropriate care in pregnancy with the aim of improving outcomes in twin pregnancies.

The pilot study has now been completed, and found that further research would be both feasible and important in the future of twin pregnancy care.

This study was carried out by Professor Alex Heazell at the University of Manchester, and was funded by the Twins Trust and BMFMS research bursaries.