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Study may pave way for treatments to delay early multiple births
June 11, 2009A treatment that prevents premature births in single pregnancies may be ineffective in women expecting more than one child, a study has shown.
The study, led by a University of Edinburgh researcher, suggests an underlying difference between the way in which premature births occur in women with single and multiple pregnancies.
The findings published in the The Lancet could help inform improvements in treatment to prevent premature births in women expecting more than one child and help researchers understand how the process of premature labour may be different.
The study looked at nearly 500 women around the country expecting twins, which account for more than 98 per cent of multiple births in the UK.
Half of the women were given progesterone gel - a hormone which helps protect the lining of the womb - while the other half were given a dummy version. The treatment has been shown to reduce early births in women expecting one child considered at high risk of early labour, including those who had previously given birth prematurely.
However, researchers found that contrary to singleton pregnancies, the hormone gel did not reduce rates of premature births.
Professor Jane Norman, director of the Tommy's Centre for Maternal and Fetal Health Research at the University of Edinburgh, said: "While the study looked at twins, it suggests that the biological process of premature births in women with multiple births is different for that than in women expecting one child.
"Understanding the differences between what happens in premature births in singleton and multiple pregnancies can help us improve treatments and also address the higher incidence of premature labour in multiple pregnancies."
Professor Norman, who is also a consultant obstetrician at the Simpson's Centre for Reproductive Health at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, said that around 20 per cent of multiple pregnancies resulted in pre-term delivery before 34 weeks compared to two to three per cent of pregnancies for women expecting one child
Multiple pregnancies accounted for 1.6 per cent of all births in the UK in 2007, but rates of stillbirths and neonatal mortality are between three and eight times higher than in singleton pregnancies.
University of Edinburgh
The study looked at nearly 500 women around the country expecting twins, which account for more than 98 per cent of multiple births in the UK.
Half of the women were given progesterone gel - a hormone which helps protect the lining of the womb - while the other half were given a dummy version. The treatment has been shown to reduce early births in women expecting one child considered at high risk of early labour, including those who had previously given birth prematurely.
However, researchers found that contrary to singleton pregnancies, the hormone gel did not reduce rates of premature births.
Professor Jane Norman, director of the Tommy's Centre for Maternal and Fetal Health Research at the University of Edinburgh, said: "While the study looked at twins, it suggests that the biological process of premature births in women with multiple births is different for that than in women expecting one child.
"Understanding the differences between what happens in premature births in singleton and multiple pregnancies can help us improve treatments and also address the higher incidence of premature labour in multiple pregnancies."
Professor Norman, who is also a consultant obstetrician at the Simpson's Centre for Reproductive Health at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, said that around 20 per cent of multiple pregnancies resulted in pre-term delivery before 34 weeks compared to two to three per cent of pregnancies for women expecting one child
Multiple pregnancies accounted for 1.6 per cent of all births in the UK in 2007, but rates of stillbirths and neonatal mortality are between three and eight times higher than in singleton pregnancies.
University of Edinburgh
Multiple Births Current Events and Multiple Births News RSSIVF insurance coverage yields fewer multiple births, Yale researchers find
The proportion of in vitro fertilization (IVF) multiple births was lower in the eight states that provide insurance coverage for couples seeking IVF treatment, primarily due to fewer embryos transferred per cycle.
Global death toll: 1 million premature babies every year
More than one million infants die each year because they are born too early, according to the just released White Paper, The Global and Regional Toll of Preterm Birth.
Canada's universal health care system should fund in-vitro fertilization
Canada should extend universal health coverage to fund in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection.
ICSI or IVF: Babies born from frozen embryos do just as well
Analysis of the longest running ICSI programme in the United States has found reassuring evidence that babies born from frozen embryos fertilised via ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection) do just as well as those born from frozen embryos fertilised via standard IVF treatment.
Accelerated Fertility Treatment Leads to Shortened Time to Pregnancy and Cost Savings
A major new trial recently published in the journal Fertility and Sterility shows that for couples beginning infertility treatments, an accelerated path to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) can offer a shorter time to pregnancy, cost savings of nearly $10,000, and a lowered risk of multiple births.
2 studies: The first finds twins born after fertility treatment have a higher risk of problems
Twins born as a result of assisted reproductive technology (ART) are more likely to be admitted to neonatal intensive care and to be hospitalised in their first three years of life than spontaneously conceived twins
Mothers of multiple births at increased odds of postpartum depression
Mothers of multiples have 43 percent increased odds of having moderate to severe depressive symptoms nine months after giving birth compared to mothers of single-born children, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Engineering Bouncing Babies, One at a Time
As hopeful moms-to-be learn, there are important considerations to the successful implantation of a fertilized human egg. A calm environment, regular hormonal injections and the timing of the implantation can all affect the outcome of an in-vitro procedure.
Preterm births rise 36 percent since early 1980s
New government statistics confirm that the decades-long rise in the United States preterm birth rate continues, putting more infants than ever at increased risk of death and disability.
Post-term pregnancies risk infant's life and health, UCSF studies show
Infants born more than one week past their due dates have a higher risk of both impaired health and death, according to two new studies by authors from the University of California's San Francisco and Berkeley campuses.
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