Multiples are about twice as likely as singleton babies to have birth defects, including neural tube defects (such as spina bifida), cerebral palsy, congenital heart defects and birth defects that affect the digestive system.
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Why do twins have more health problems?
Babies from twin pregnancies are more likely to suffer from birth-related complications than those from singleton pregnancies. Fraternal and identical twins can be affected by pregnancy complications, and subsequent birth defects.
Are twins more likely to have disorders?
A number of studies have shown that, even among children of similar birth weight and gestational age, twins are more likely to suffer from the disorder.
What are the most common complications with twins?
The most common complications include the following:
- Preterm labor and birth. Over 60 percent of twins and nearly all higher-order multiples are premature (born before 37 weeks).
- Gestational hypertension.
- Anemia.
- Birth defects.
- Miscarriage.
- Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome.
What are the disadvantages of being twins?
With twins, you’re at greater risk for:
- Premature birth. Twins are born prematurely more than half the time.
- Low birth weight (LBW). More than half of twins are born with LBW, weighing less than 5 1/2 pounds.
- Twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS).
Are twins as healthy as singletons?
Background: Twin pregnancy is associated with more pregnancy complications and poorer pregnancy outcome than singleton pregnancy.
Do twins have a higher rate of autism?
Using a mathematical analysis of data, his team found that identical twins were much more likely to have similar levels of autistic symptoms than fraternal twins. Those researchers also concluded that: High levels of autism symptoms are genetic in origin. Less severe symptoms are not as likely to be inherited.
Are twins less intelligent?
Twins on the average seem to have lower IQs than singletons. The best estimate for this group difference is 4.2 IQ points (less than one-third of a standard deviation), with a great divide between study outcomes of less vs more recent birth cohorts (5.1 vs 0.5 IQ points, respectively).
Can twins feel each other’s death?
When a twin dies, the twinless twin longs to reconnect. The twinless twin may have phantom pain or feel half dead. He or she may feel a need to represent both him or herself and the deceased twin or may even take on behaviors of the deceased twin. Dr.
What happens to twins when one dies?
When a twin dies after the embryonic period of gestation, the water within the twin’s tissues, the amniotic fluid, and the placental tissue may be reabsorbed. This results in the flattening of the deceased twin from the pressure of the surviving twin.
Is carrying twins harder than one?
7: If you’re pregnant with twins, you may gain more weight than if you’re carrying one child. “With twins, mothers gain more weight as there are two babies, two placentas, and more amniotic fluid,” says Al-Khan. “You also need more calories for twin pregnancies.”
How often do both twins survive?
Just 40% of twin pregnancies go full term. The average twin pregnancy is 35 weeks, compared to the average singleton pregnancy, which is 39 weeks. Prematurity may lead to a number of problems, including: Immature lungs, leading to difficulty in breathing.
What’s the longest you can carry twins?
While 40 weeks is the full gestation period of the average pregnancy, most twin pregnancies are delivered at approximately 36 weeks (range 32-38 weeks depending on the type of twin pregnancy).
What are the positives of being a twin?
The findings suggest that being a twin offers social, psychological and physiological benefits that could improve health and extend longevity, Sharrow said. The researchers called this concept a “twin protection effect,” he added.
What are the positives of having twins?
11 positives to having twins, triplets or more
- The extra help. When friends and family find out it’s twins, they’re so excited to help – offers to sit down, snacks, little errands.
- Holding them.
- Feeling special.
- Watching them grow.
- The backup.
- Being stronger.
- Being the same age.
- Birthdays.
What is the benefit of twins?
Although it is a bit easier to get complications when having twins, the most important benefit is that you get two babies from one pregnancy. You combine all the discomfort, misery, body fat and inconvenient sleeping patterns of one pregnancy (which you would normally suffer through twice) to birth two babies at once.
Are twin bellies bigger?
Your belly may grow bigger, and you may gain more weight, sooner. Talk to your doctor about how much you might expect to gain. When you’re carrying twins, you and your babies may be tested and checked more than you would for a single-baby pregnancy.
What is the survival rate of twin?
The overall survival rate was 313/354 (88%) with 146/177 (82%) pregnancies resulting in survival of both twins, 21/177 (12%) in survival of one twin and 10/177 (6%) in loss of both twins.
Do twins end up shorter?
The fixed-effects regression analysis of the sibships that included both twins and singletons showed that the twins were 0.9 cm (95% confidence interval: 0.6, 1.2) shorter than were their singleton brothers.
Why do so many twins have autism?
Studies in twins have shown that autism has genetic origins: A child is more likely to have autism if his or her sibling or twin also has the disorder. But there is also evidence that factors other than genetics, collectively referred to as ‘the environment,’ play a role.
Do twins take longer to speak?
Overall, twins had twice the rate of late language emergence of single-born children. None of the children had disabilities affecting language acquisition. The results of the study were published in the June 2014 Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research.