Table of contents
Multiple gestation
Guidelines
Key sources
The following summarized guidelines for the evaluation and management of multiple gestation are prepared by our editorial team based on guidelines from the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC 2023,2022,2017,2013), the American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG 2022), the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG 2021,2017), the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO 2021), the Royal ...
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Screening and diagnosis
Diagnosis of twin pregnancy: as per SOGC 2017 guidelines, obtain a first-trimester ultrasound in all patients suspected to have or being at risk (such as pregnancies resulting from ART) of having a twin pregnancy on first-trimester physical examination.
B
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Determination of gestational age
Determination of chorionicity and amnionicity
Classification and risk stratification
Maternal and perinatal risks
As per ACOG 2017 guidelines:
Recognize that multifetal pregnancies increase maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. Recognize that higher-order multifetal pregnancies present higher risks than twin pregnancies.
E
Recognize the medical risks of multifetal pregnancy, the potential medical benefits of multifetal pregnancy reduction, and the complex ethical issues inherent in decisions regarding multifetal pregnancy reduction. Be prepared to respond in a professional and ethical manner to patients requesting or declining to receive information or intervention, or both.
E
Diagnostic investigations
Screening for chromosomal abnormalities, noninvasive testing: as per SOGC 2023 guidelines, consider obtaining aneuploidy screening with either combined prenatal serum screening (first-trimester screening or integrated prenatal screening as available) or cell-free fetal DNA analysis of maternal blood in monochorionic pregnancies.
C
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Screening for chromosomal abnormalities (invasive testing)
Screening for structural abnormalities
Evaluation for discordant abnormalities
Monitoring for selective intrauterine growth restriction
Monitoring for twin-twin transfusion syndrome
Antenatal fetal monitoring
Nonpharmacologic interventions
Bed rest: as per SOGC 2022 guidelines, do not advise bed rest or restriction of activity in patients with twin pregnancies, either in the presence or absence of risk factors for preterm birth.
D
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Cervical pessary
Therapeutic procedures
Cervical cerclage: as per SOGC 2022 guidelines, consider performing cervical cerclage in asymptomatic patients with twin pregnancies when cervical length is ≤ 15 mm.
C
perform cervical cerclage when cervical dilation is ≥ 1 cm before 24 weeks gestation. B
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Selective reduction
Management of delivery (monochorionic twins)
Management of delivery (dichorionic twins)
Specific circumstances
Patients with selective intrauterine growth restriction, diagnosis
As per FIGO 2021 guidelines:
Base the definition of fetal growth restriction on a combination of measures of fetal size percentile and Doppler abnormalities.
B
Take into consideration intertwin size discordance when diagnosing fetal growth restriction in twin gestations, especially in the case of monochorionic placentation. A
Consider using twin-specific charts for the assessment of fetal growth in twin gestations to avoid overdiagnosis of fetal growth restriction in this population.
C
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Patients with selective intrauterine growth restriction (management)
Patients with twin-twin transfusion syndrome (diagnosis)
Patients with twin-twin transfusion syndrome (evaluation)
Patients with twin-twin transfusion syndrome (management)
Patients with single fetal demise
Patients with conjoined twins
Patient education
General counseling: as per ACOG 2017 guidelines, provide nondirective counseling in all patients with higher-order multifetal pregnancies and include a discussion of the risks unique to multifetal pregnancy as well as the option to continue or reduce the pregnancy. Consider including maternal-fetal medicine specialists, neonatologists, mental health professionals, child development specialists, support groups, and clinicians with procedural expertise in multifetal pregnancy reduction for providing such counseling.
E
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Preventative measures
Primary prevention: as per ACOG 2017 guidelines, recognize that fertility treatments have contributed significantly to the increase in multifetal pregnancies. Consider implementing primary prevention strategies in the treatment for infertility to limit multifetal pregnancies, especially higher-order multifetal pregnancies, to minimize the need for multifetal pregnancy reduction.
E
Follow-up and surveillance
Indications for referral: as per SOGC 2023 guidelines, refer to, or at least consult with, a regional maternal-fetal medicine program or fetal therapy center to explore all management options for patients with monochorionic twin complications, including:
monoamnioticity
discordance for an anomaly
selective fetal growth restriction
twin anemia-polycythemia sequence
twin reversed arterial perfusion sequence
single intrauterine demise.
A