Risk in twin pregnancies after the use of assisted reproductive techniques
Omar Shebl1, Thomas Ebner, Michael Sommergruber
1In Vitro Fertilization Unit, Landesfrauen- und Kinderklinik, Linz, Austria. omar.shebl@gespag.at
Objective:
To analyze whether there is an increased perinatal risk for twin pregnancies after in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI).
Study Design:
The medical files of 216 twin pregnancies (group 1) conceived through IVF/ICSI and 377 spontaneously conceived twin pregnancies (group 2) were assessed retrospectively. Data on gestational age at delivery, mode of delivery, birth weight, neonatal intensive care unit admission, duration of hospitalization, perinatal mortality and malformations were recorded. Statistical analysis was made by the chi2 test. Differences of the means of parametric data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney test.
Results:
The frequency of cesarean section was higher in group 1. Mean gestational age, frequency of preterm birth, birth weight, and frequency of low birth weight and very low birth weight were similar in both groups. The frequency of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants was significantly higher in group 1. Perinatal outcome, rate of malformations and neonatal mortality rate were similar in the 2 groups.
Conclusion:
We found an increased risk of SGA infants in IVF/ICSI twin pregnancies as compared to spontaneously conceived twin pregnancies.
Related Concept Videos
01:07Teratogenicity
01:59CRISPR
01:24In Vitro Fertilization
The IVF process begins with ovarian stimulation, during which reproductive endocrinologists prescribe hormonal medications to stimulate the ovaries to produce multiple eggs instead of the single...
01:23Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast, controlled...