Information on Twin Pregnancy

A pregnancy that leads to the birth of two babies due to the formation of two zygotes or a single zygote splitting up into two is defined as twin pregnancy. It is a case of abnormality that occurs once in every eighty pregnancies.

Factors Driving To Twin Pregnancy:

When two eggs are released by the ovary at the same time, twin pregnancy occurs. This condition occurs to the women who get conceived after an age of thirty. Such delayed pregnancy may lead to steroid hormonal changes. Due to the decreased fertility, aged women may undergo fertility treatment to give birth to a baby. Such treatment may cause the production of two ova, thus leading to twin pregnancy.

The Phenomenon:

There are two types of twins; fraternal and identical. Fraternal twins are formed by the fertilization of two different eggs by two different sperms. They are called non identical twins and they are genetically not alike. They have separate placenta and umbilical chord.

Identical twins are formed by the splitting up of the fertilized egg in to two, thus the two babies share the same placenta but they have their own umbilical chord. In most cases they are genetically alike. Sometimes, identical twins fail to separate resulting in conjoined twins.

Symptoms:

Some of the common symptoms of twin pregnancy are

• Women diagnosed with twin pregnancy gain more weight than the other conceived ones. This is due to the excess secretion of steroid hormones owing to the demand for the two babies.
  
• The most common symptom experienced by fifty percent of the conceived women is morning sickness. This happens only during the period of first fourteen months resulting in nausea or vomiting.
  
• The pregnant women find hard to sleep due to general uneasiness and pain.
  
• Due to the excess growth of fetus for the accommodation of twins, the uterus forces down the pelvic vein so that more water is pushed to the lower limbs instead of blood. This causes the hands and toes to get swollen during gestation period.
  
• Other common symptoms are extreme weariness and unusual hunger. This is because the body needs more essential nutrients to keep themselves as well their two fetuses fit.

Complications:

The complications met by the mother during twin pregnancy are

• Twin pregnancy may often lead to the birth of babies before the gestation period is over. This early birth may also causes cesarean section for the delivery of babies.
  
• Due to the sharing of essential nutrients from the mother to the child, abnormal growth of tissues in the uterus may develop.
  
• Certain birth defects such as co-joined twins may be formed as the result of twin pregnancy.
  
• Any one of the fetus may die due to the excess fluid in the amniotic sac. Certain birth defects may occur due to the complications in the placenta, umbilical chord etc.
  
• High blood pressure and anemia are experience by this type of conceived women.
  
• Severe complications such as excess bleeding after delivery (post partum hemorrhage) occur. This may lead to the death of the mother.
  
• Gestational diabetes is known to occur only during the time of pregnancy. This causes breathing problems at the time of birth.
  
• In case of identical twins, the blood vessels may transfuse so that one baby gets excess blood while the other gets only little. This leads to severe problems.

Mother Care:

The best way to take care of the babies is nothing but taking care of the mothers themselves. Frequent checkup to monitor the baby’s development and growth as well as their health is a must to avoid complications. Also essential nutrients under the prescription of the doctor are also required for the health of the fetus.