[Triploidy in the newborn infant; clinical course and cytogenetic aspects]

Two female newborns with multiple malformations who survived for 7 days and 6 1/2 hours, respectively, had the symptoms and cytogenetic aspects of triploidy (69,XXX). Autopsy showed that the gallbladder was absent in both. Until now only ten patients who lived for more than 24 hours have been described. According to probability calculus, approximately 17 patients with triploidy should be born each year in the Netherlands; the chance of having a child with triploidy in the next pregnancy is almost nil. This emphasizes the importance of chromosomal analysis in stillborns or liveborns with complex abnormalities.