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Birth-weight-specific perinatal mortality in Japan, 1989-1993: singleton versus multifetal pregnancies
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Jichi Medical School, Minamikawachi-machi, Tochigi, Japan. minasho@jichi.ac.jp
Gynecologic and Obstetric Investigation
|July 8, 1999
Summary
Perinatal mortality risk for multifetal infants is lower at lower birth weights but higher for those weighing over 2,500 grams. Increased monitoring for heavier multifetal infants may reduce deaths.
Area of Science:
- Perinatal medicine
- Obstetrics
- Neonatology
Background:
- Perinatal mortality is significantly higher in multifetal pregnancies compared to singleton pregnancies.
- Understanding the relationship between birth weight and perinatal death is crucial for improving outcomes in high-risk pregnancies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between birth weight and perinatal mortality in multifetal pregnancies.
- To compare perinatal death rates between multifetal and singleton infants across different birth weight categories.
Main Methods:
- A large-scale retrospective study analyzing data from 89,566 infants of multifetal pregnancies and 6,025,199 infants of singleton pregnancies in Japan.
- Perinatal death was defined as stillbirth or early neonatal death (within the first week of life).
Main Results:
- Infants from multifetal pregnancies had a lower incidence of perinatal death at birth weights between 500-2,499 grams compared to singleton infants.
- However, multifetal infants weighing 2,500 grams or more had a higher incidence of perinatal death than singleton infants in the same weight category.
- Relative risk of perinatal death for multifetal infants compared to singleton infants increased significantly with higher birth weights, exceeding 1.0 at 2,500 grams and reaching 14.9 at >/=3,500 grams.
Conclusions:
- Japanese infants from multifetal pregnancies weighing 2,500 grams or more face a substantially elevated risk of perinatal death compared to their singleton counterparts.
- Enhanced surveillance and monitoring of multifetal fetuses reaching a birth weight of 2,500 grams or more are recommended to mitigate perinatal mortality.