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. 2022 May;67(5):261-265.
doi: 10.1038/s10038-021-01001-0. Epub 2022 Jan 1.

Prevalence of common aneuploidy in twin pregnancies

Akiko Konishi  1 , Osamu Samura  2 , Jin Muromoto  3 , Yoko Okamoto  4 , Hironori Takahashi  5 , Yasuyo Kasai  6 , Mayuko Ichikawa  7 , Naoki Yamada  8 , Noriko Kato  9 , Hiroshi Sato  10 , Hiromi Hamada  11 , Naoyuki Nakanami  12 , Maya Machi  13 , Kiyotake Ichizuka  14 , Rei Sunami  15 , Toshitaka Tanaka  16 , Naoto Yonetani  17 , Yoshimasa Kamei  18 , Takeshi Nagamatsu  19 , Mariko Matsumoto  20 , Shinya Tairaku  21 , Arisa Fujiwara  22 , Hiroaki Nakamura  23 , Takashi Harada  24 , Takafumi Watanabe  25 , Shoko Sasaki  26 , Satoshi Kawaguchi  27 , Sawako Minami  28 , Masaki Ogawa  29 , Kiyonori Miura  30 , Nobuhiro Suzumori  31 , Junya Kojima  32 , Tomomi Kotani  33 , Rumi Sasaki  34 , Tsukasa Baba  35 , Aya Toyofuku  36 , Masayuki Endo  37 , Naoki Takeshita  38 , Takeshi Taketani  39 , Masakatsu Sase  40 , Keiichi Matsubara  41 , Kei Hayata  42 , Yoshinobu Hamada  43 , Makiko Egawa  44 , Toshiyuki Kakinuma  45 , Sachio Matsushima  46 , Michihiro Kitagawa  47 , Tomomi Shiga  48 , Ryuhei Kurashina  49 , Hironori Hamada  50 , Hiroaki Takagi  51 , Akane Kondo  52 , Norio Miharu  53 , Michiko Yamashita  54 , Madoka Horiya  55 , Keiji Morimoto  56 , Ken Takahashi  1 , Aikou Okamoto  1 , Akihiko Sekizawa  13 , Haruhiko Sago  3
Affiliations

Prevalence of common aneuploidy in twin pregnancies

Akiko Konishi et al. J Hum Genet. 2022 May.

Abstract

The incidence of chromosomal abnormalities in twin pregnancies is not well-studied. In this retrospective study, we investigated the frequency of chromosomal abnormalities in twin pregnancies and compared the incidence of chromosomal abnormalities in dichorionic diamniotic (DD) and monochorionic diamniotic (MD) twins. We used data from 57 clinical facilities across Japan. Twin pregnancies of more than 12 weeks of gestation managed between January 2016 and December 2018 were included in the study. A total of 2899 and 1908 cases of DD and MD twins, respectively, were reported, and the incidence of chromosomal abnormalities in one or both fetuses was 0.9% (25/2899) and 0.2% (4/1908) in each group (p = 0.004). In this study, the most common chromosomal abnormality was trisomy 21 (51.7% [15/29]), followed by trisomy 18 (13.8% [4/29]) and trisomy 13 (6.9% [2/29]). The incidence of trisomy 21 in MD twins was lower than that in DD twins (0.05% vs. 0.5%, p = 0.007). Trisomy 21 was less common in MD twins, even when compared with the expected incidence in singletons (0.05% vs. 0.3%, RR 0.15 [95% CI 0.04-0.68]). The risk of chromosomal abnormality decreases in twin pregnancies, especially in MD twins.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. Number and types of twin pregnancies included in the study.
The number and types of twin pregnancies included in the study, as well as the excluded cases and the reason for exclusion, are summarized. DD Dichorionic diamniotic, MD Monochorionic diamniotic, and MM Monochorionic monoamniotic.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2. Maternal age distribution in different groups.
The number of mothers of DD and MD twins and the maternal age is displayed. DD Dichorionic diamniotic and MD Monochorionic diamniotic
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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