Twin Births (twin + birth)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Use of postpartum vaginoscopic (visual vaginal) examination of dairy cows for the diagnosis of endometritis and the association of endrometritis with reduced reproductive performance

AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY JOURNAL, Issue 6 2008
DJ RUNCIMAN
Objective To assess the association between the findings from vaginoscopic examination of postpartum dairy cows with peripartum reproductive disease and their subsequent reproductive performance, and to determine the factors that might be associated with a positive vaginoscopic examination (VV). Methods Cows (n = 1325) from 17 seasonal calving dairy herds were enrolled if they had been calved at least 7 days and had at least one of the following conditions that placed them at risk of endometritis: retained fetal membranes (RFM), dystocia, a dead calf, hypocalcaemia, twin birth, calving induction or an observed vulval discharge (VD). Examination was undertaken 28,37 days before mating start date (MSD) within each herd. All cows were body condition scored (BCS) and were VV scored on a scale of 0 (clear) to 3 (purulent). The uterus and ovaries were assessed by rectal palpation. Results Cows with a positive VV score (1,3) were less likely to conceive to first service and had a lower pregnancy proportion than cows that had a negative VV score (score 0). Mean MSD to conception interval was longer in VV-positive cows. A positive VV score was associated with a low BCS, primiparity, intrapelvic uterus, poor uterine tone, large uterus, RFM, VD, dystocia, dead calf and twins. Conclusion In the present study a positive VV score was associated with reduced reproductive performance and was more common in primiparous and low BCS cows. Of the at-risk cows, those with RFM, VD, dystocia, dead calf or twins were more likely to have a positive VV score. [source]


Twins and cerebral palsy

ACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 2001
POD Pharoah
In a national follow-up study of twin births, monozygous compared with dizygous twins were at significantly increased for both to die in utero, one to die in utero and the co-twin to die in infancy, or both to be livebirths but both die in infancy. The prevalence of cerebral palsy among survivors of a co-twin fetal death was 80.2 and other cerebral impairment was 107.0 per 1000. Many apparently singleton cases of cerebral palsy and impairment may be due to fetal death of a twin that has not been recognized or has been recognized but not registered. [source]


Polymicrogyria in monozygous twins and an elder sibling

DEVELOPMENTAL MEDICINE & CHILD NEUROLOGY, Issue 7 2003
Po-Cheng Hung MD
Monozygous twin births have been associated with brain lesions such as hydranencephaly, multicystic encephalomalacia, and porencephaly. Prenatal circulatory injury has been considered to be the cause. Polymicrogyria is rare but has been reported in autopsied cases. The sibship in this case report, comprising monozygotic male twins and their elder sister from the same non-consanguineous parents, all had global developmental delay. Brain MRI showed polymicrogyria. We suggest that, apart from circulatory compromise, genetic etiology must be implicated as the cause of polymicrogyria. [source]


Identification of monozygous twins and microsatellite mutation rate in pigs from QTL linkage analysis data

JOURNAL OF ANIMAL BREEDING AND GENETICS, Issue 5 2001
L. Grapes
In previous work, microsatellite markers have primarily been tools for genome studies. However, the use of marker data can be extended beyond its original intent to maximize the amount of information obtained. There have been few studies to determine the occurrence of monozygous (MZ) twins in pigs. The advent of DNA marker technology, and microsatellites in particular, allows MZ twins to be identified based on their genotype data. To determine if MZ twin births occur in pigs, genotypes for F2 individuals, n=525, from 65 Berkshire × Yorkshire families were examined. One pair of female twins was found to have matching genotype data (95% CI: 0,2.94 twins). This is a unique result since there have been no published reports to date of twin pigs that survived until birth. Additionally, three dinucleotide microsatellite mutations were found after screening 134 565 meioses of 125 loci spanning the entire genome and the X chromosome. The average mutation rate for the population, n=570, was 2.23 × 10,5 (95% CI: 6.17 × 10,6,6.51 × 10,5). A mutation rate similar to this was published earlier for dinucleotide repeat microsatellite mutations in swine. Identification de jumeaux monozygotes et taux de mutation des microsatellites à partir de données d, analyse de liaison avec des caractères quantitatifs Jusqu'à présent, les marqueurs microsatelittes ont été principalement utilisés comme outils pour étudier le génome. Cependant, l'utilisation des données de marquage peut être étendue au delà de ce but initial et permet d'obtenir d'autres types d'informations. Au cours des dernières années, il n'y a eu que peu d'études visant à determiner l'existence de jumeaux monozygotes (MZ) chez le porc. L'avènement des techniques de marquage de l'ADN, et plus particulièrement des microsatelittes, permet l'identification de jumeaux MZ sur la base de leur génotype aux marqueurs. Afin de déterminer s'il existe des jumeaux MZ chez le porc, nous avons examiné les génotypes d'individus F2 (n=525) issus de 65 familles Berkshire × Yorkshire. La recherche d'individus ayant un genotype identique a permis d'identifer un couple de jumeaux femelles (95% CI: 0,2.94). Il s'agit d'un résultat unique car jusqu'à ce jour, il n'y avait aucun cas publié de jumeaux ayant survécus après la naissance chez le porc. Par ailleurs, après analyse de 134 565 méioses pour 125 loci répartis sur l'ensemble du génome et sur le chromosome X, 3 mutations ont été trouvées au niveau de microsatelittes dinucleotidiques. Le taux moyen de mutation dans la population (n=570) a été estiméà 2.23 × 10,5 (95% IC: 6.17 × 10,6à 6.51 × 10,5). Un taux de mutation similaire à celui-ci a été publié précédemment pour des marqueurs microsatelittes dinucleotidiques chez le porc. [source]


Nausea and vomiting in pregnancy: maternal characteristics and risk factors

PAEDIATRIC & PERINATAL EPIDEMIOLOGY, Issue 4 2006
Carol Louik
Summary Nausea with or without vomiting (NVP) is probably the most frequently reported medical complaint of pregnancy, but few studies have considered risk factors for its development. We used data from an ongoing epidemiological study of pregnancies in four regional centres. Mothers of infants with congenital malformations (n = 17 158) and a sample of normal infants (n = 5329) were interviewed within 6 months of delivery by trained nurse-interviewers using a standardised questionnaire. For all risk factors investigated, odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using multiple logistic regression, controlling for potential confounders. The cumulative incidence (risk) of NVP was 67%. The risk of NVP and its timing during pregnancy were similar for mothers of malformed and normal infants, so data were combined. No changes in the NVP risk were observed over the 20-year study period. The risk decreased with increasing age, but increased with increasing gravidity. The risk also increased with increasing number of prior miscarriages. Further, within each gravidity category, the risk was higher for twin births than for singletons. Women who reported onset of NVP after the first trimester differed demographically from women whose NVP began earlier: they were less-well educated, had lower incomes, and were more likely to be black. The finding that the number of prior pregnancies, both complete and incomplete, and number of fetuses independently appear to increase the risk of NVP suggests a fetal ,dose' effect. Together with selected demographic characteristics that differentiate early- vs. late-onset NVP, these findings warrant further investigation. [source]


Maternal height and child mortality in 42 developing countries

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2009
Christiaan W. S. Monden
Previous research reports mixed results about the association between maternal height and child mortality. Some studies suggest that the negative association might be stronger in contexts with fewer resources. This hypothesis has yet not been tested in a cross-nationally comparative design. We use data on 307,223 children born to 194,835 women in 444 districts of 42 developing countries to estimate the association between maternal height and child mortality and test whether this association is modified by indicators at the level of the household (like sex, age and twin status of the child and socio-economic characteristics of the mother and her partner), district (regional level of development, public health facilities and female occupational attainment) and country (GDP per capita). We find a robust negative effect of logged maternal height on child mortality. The effect of maternal health is strongest for women with least education and is more important in the first year after birth and for twin births. The indicators of development at the district and country level do not modify the effect of maternal height. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Modelling the potential impact of population-wide periconceptional folate/multivitamin supplementation on multiple births

BJOG : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS & GYNAECOLOGY, Issue 9 2001
Judith Lumley
Objective To develop a model of the impact of population-wide periconceptional folate supplementation on neural tube defects and twin births. Design A hypothetical cohort of 100,000 pregnancies ,20 weeks, plus terminations of pregnancy after prenatal diagnosis before 20 weeks. Methods Application of pooled data on the relative risks for neural tube defects and twins following periconceptional folate from meta-analysis of the randomised trials. Main outcome measures 1. Pregnancies with a neural tube defect (i.e. terminations of pregnancy, perinatal deaths, and surviving infants); 2. twin births (i.e. preterm births, perinatal deaths, postneonatal deaths, birth defects, cerebral palsy); 3. numbers needed to treat. Results The change in neural tube defects would be 75 fewer terminations (95% CI -47, -90), 30 fewer perinatal deaths (95% CI 18, -35), and 13 fewer surviving infants with a neural tube defect (95% CI ,8, -16). The change in twinning would be an additional 572 twin confinements (95% CI ,100, +1587), among whom there would be 63 very preterm twin confinements (95% CI ,11, +174), 54 perinatal and postneonatal deaths (95% CI ,9, +149), 48 surviving twins with a birth defect (95% CI ,8, +133), and nine with cerebral palsy (95% CI ,2, +26). The numbers needed to treat for the prevention of one pregnancy with a neural tube defect is 847, for the birth of one additional set of twins is 175, for the birth of one additional set of very preterm twins is 1587, and for the birth of an additional twin with any of the following outcomes (perinatal death, postneonatal death, survival with a birth defect, or survival with cerebral palsy) is 901. Conclusions Monitoring rates of neural tube defects and twinning is essential as supplementation or fortification with folate is implemented. [source]