Reduction of multifetal pregnancies to twins does not increase obstetric or perinatal risks

Abstract

Selective reduction in cases of multiple fetuses is used more often nowadays due to the increased number of multiple pregnancies resulting from assisted reproduction. In this retrospective study, we investigated whether twin pregnancies derived from fetal reduction carry a higher obstetric and perinatal risk compared to standard twin pregnancies. We found that the rate of miscarriage was 10.6% in the reduction group (n = 158) compared to 9.5% in the controls (n = 135). Mean gestational age at delivery was 35.7 weeks in the reduction group versus 35.1 weeks in the control group. Mean neonatal weight at birth was 2.260 g (800–3.750 g) in the reduction group compared to 2.240 g (540–3.360 g) in controls. Perinatal mortality rate was 49.3‰ after reduction and 42.0‰ in the control group. There was no statistically significant difference in any of the above parameters. Therefore, multifetal pregnancy reduction to twins does not appear to increase obstetric or perinatal risks.