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What percentage of twin pregnancies result in premature births?

Fit Pregnancy article, Two in the Oven: Facts about twin pregnancies you may not know, more than half of twin pregnancies are born before 37 weeks (Two in the Oven).

According to American Pregnancy Association's article, Complications in A Multiples Pregnancy, "Of all the types of multiple births, twins usually face the fewest medical problems and complications. Each additional baby a woman carries during her pregnancy increases the possibility of developing pregnancy complications." The article defines preterm labor and delivery as, "Delivery before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy. On average most singleton pregnancies last 39 weeks, twin pregnancies 36 weeks, triplets 32, and quintuplets 29 weeks." As for the numbers, it continues on to say, "Almost 60% of twins are delivered preterm and 90% of triplets are preterm" (Complications In A Multiples Pregnancy). That means only 40% of twins deliver at term. 

According to the American Society For Reproductive Medicine's article, Multiple Pregnancies, and Birth: Twins, Triplets, and High Order Multiples, "Preterm labor and birth pose the greatest risks to a multiples pregnancy." They agree with American Pregnancy Association's 60% of twins are delivered preterm, while including "about 10% of singletons are delivered preterm" (Multiple Pregnancy and Birth).


In Web Md's article, 11 Things You Didn't Know About Twin Pregnancies, the article explains, "there is no evidence that bed rest alone prevents preterm labor or delivery in twin pregnancies, and the use of agents to stop preterm labor has not been effective. Stopping Preterm labor is challenging in multiple gestations" (Mann).

In Parenting.com's article, Can You Prevent Preterm Labor?, it says, "Premature birth is not to be taken lightly. It's the number one cause of neonatal death in the first month of life and can trigger health problems, such as developmental delays, chronic lung disease and cerebral palsy" (Singer).


This reminds me of a mother I met through a mutual friend. We will call this mother Anya. Anya is a Caucasian woman who became pregnant with twins. I do not know if there were fertility treatments involved or if this occurred naturally. What I do know is Anya went into preterm labor with her fraternal boy/girl twins. Her boy twin died. Her girl twin lived but has some health issues. I know of a similar story with another mother in one of my online forums. We will call this mother Elizabeth. Elizabeth is a Caucasian woman who became pregnant with fraternal boy/girl twins through InVitro Fertilization (IVF). Her girl twin lived, and her boy twin died of SIDS. She went on to have another baby, this time, a healthy singleton girl.



- Sources - 

1. "Complications in A Multiples Pregnancy." American Pregnancy Association. American Pregnancy Association, July 2015. Web. 16 Dec. 2015. <http://americanpregnancy.org/multiples/complications/>.

2. Mann, Denise, and Louise Chang, MD. "Expecting Twins? Here Are 11 Things You Should Know About Twin Pregnancies." WebMD. WebMD, 2015. Web. 18 Dec. 2015. <http://www.webmd.com/baby/features/11-things-you-didnt-know-about-twin-pregnancies>.

3. "Multiple Pregnancy and Birth: Twins, Triplets, and High-order Multiples." American Society for Reproductive Medicine. American Society for Reproductive Medicine, 2012. Web. 16 Dec. 2015. <http://www.asrm.org/BOOKLET_Multiple_Pregnancy_and_Birth/>.

4. Singer, Lisa. "Can You Prevent Preterm Labor." Parenting.com. Meredith Corporation, 2015. Web. 20 Dec. 2015. <http://www.parenting.com/article/can-you-prevent-preterm-labor>.

5. "Two In The Oven." Fit Pregnancy and Baby. Meredith Corporation, 2016. Web. 12 Oct. 2016. <http://www.fitpregnancy.com/pregnancy/getting-pregnant/two-oven>.

Last Edited: June 24, 2017

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