Naturally, twins occur in about one in 250 pregnancies, triplets in about one in 10,000 pregnancies, and quadruplets in about one in 700,000 pregnancies. The main factor that increases your chances of having a multiple pregnancy is the use of infertility treatment, but there are other factors.
Multiple pregnancies make up about 1.5 per cent of births in Australia, with about 4300 sets of twins and just over 80 sets of triplets and higher order multiples born each year. Multiple pregnancies are usually recognised by the end of the first trimester due to the widespread use of ultrasound.
Triplets are far less common than twins, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, accounting for only about 4300 sets in 3.9 million births, just a little more than 0.1%, or 1 in 1000.
There is no one consistent statistic quoted when it comes to the odds of having identical triplets. But the generally agreed upon figures are in the vicinity of between one in 60,000 to one in 200 million pregnancies.
Of triplet pregnancies, 98% of all babies born after 28 weeks gestation survive! Of course sadly, this is not the case for every pregnancy, triplet or otherwise, and unexplained losses can occur at any time in the pregnancy.
Naturally, twins occur in about one in 250 pregnancies, triplets in about one in 10,000 pregnancies, and quadruplets in about one in 700,000 pregnancies.
Giving birth to triplets or more vaginally is very rare. It is not recommended because of the higher risk of labour complications and infant mortality. Since almost all triplets or more will be born prematurely, they will need special care. This may include a stay in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
Because identical twins or triplets share genetic material, they are always the same sex. The sex of a baby is determined by the particular sperm cell that fertilizes the egg at conception.
Naturally conceived triplets occur in about one and every 10,000 pregnancies.
Utah woman gives birth to identical triplets at 46. When Audrey Tiberius was 41, she was told by fertility specialists that her chances of conceiving a child with in vitro fertilization (IVF) were just 10%. “They said, 'I'm sorry, your eggs are too old,'” the Utah mom recalled in an interview with TODAY Parents.
So assuming the triplets are fraternal, the chances are 25 percent that they will be either all boys (12.5 percent) or all girls (12.5 percent). And the chances that they will be two of one sex and one of the other are 75 percent. (Two boys and one girl = 37.5 percent; two girls and one boy = 37.5 percent.)
White people assigned female at birth have the highest rate of higher-order multiple births (triplets or more). This is especially true for those older than 35.
The greatest risk in carrying triplets is your babies being born prematurely. In fact, 60% of all multiple pregnancies occur before 37 weeks of gestation. The average gestation for a triplet pregnancy is even lower, at 32 weeks.
Helen Smith, Judy Beech and Barbara Dodd from the Mornington Peninsula are thought to be Australia's oldest living triplets, having just celebrated their 90th birthday.
Results: The miscarriage rate for expectantly managed triplets was 25%, compared with 6.2% for triplets reduced to twins. This rate was similar to the rates for both groups of nonreduced twins: 5.8% (Quest) and 6.3% (Wayne State University). Severe prematurity occurred in 25% of nonreduced triplets compared with 4.
With the placenta(s) in multiple pregnancies covering a greater proportion of the uterine wall, there is a higher risk of complications that can be dangerous for mom or babies. Placental abruption or placenta previa are some situations that might prompt an early delivery.
Contrary to popular belief, identical twins (or triplets or quadruplets) don't actually run in families. Fraternal multiples might, if the women in a particular family share some genetic trait that makes them more likely to release two or more eggs during an ovulation cycle instead of one.
The longest interval between births of triplets is 17 days 18 hours 55 minutes and was achieved during the births of Lorne (USA, b. 20 September 2004), Isaac and Sullivan McBurney (both USA, b. 8 October 2004) who were born to Kara McBurney and Scott McBurney in Lee's Summit, Missouri, USA.
It's in your genes!
Ditto if you've already had a set of twins, then your chances of having another set is higher! Triplets however, don't run in families (more on that later) and are more likely a result of either random selection or assisted fertility treatments.
Trizygotic or fraternal triplets are formed when 3 separate eggs are fertilized by 3 separate sperm. The babies can be the same or opposite genders. This means that it's possible to have anyone of the following combinations of babies: 3 girls, 3 boys, 1 girl and 2 boys, or 2 girls and 1 boy.
It is possible to have triplets where two of the babies are identical twins (and may share one placenta, and even one sac) and the third baby is non-identical (with completely separate placenta and sac).
The Dionne quintuplets (born 28 May 1934, near Corbeil, Ontario, Canada) were the first quintuplets known to survive infancy. The five girls (Yvonne, Annette, Cecile, Emilie and Marie) were also the only set of identical quintuplets known to live into adulthood.
Superfetation is a phenomenon that occurs when a pregnant woman releases an egg, usually a few weeks into her pregnancy, and it's fertilized and implants in the uterus. The result is two separate pregnancies happening at the same time.
Since the risk for cerebral palsy increases so much for triplets, and higher multiples, preventing these types of pregnancies can significantly reduce the risk of cerebral palsy. Preventing multiple pregnancies is not straightforward.
Multiples are about twice as likely as singleton babies to have birth defects, including neural tube defects (such as spina bifida), cerebral palsy, congenital heart defects and birth defects that affect the digestive system. Growth problems. Multiples are usually smaller than singleton babies.