J BJOG. 2004 Nov;111(11):1294-6.
Adverse maternal outcomes in multifetal pregnancies.
Walker MC, Murphy KE, Pan S, Yang Q, Wen SW.
OMNI Research Group, Department of Obstetrics and
Gynecology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa General
Hospital, General Campus, 501 Smyth Road, Box 241,
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1H 8LG.
In this retrospective cohort of 165,188 singleton
pregnancies and 44,674 multiple-fetal pregnancies in
Canada from 1984 to 2000, we compared the incidence of
maternal complications. Multiple gestation pregnancies
were associated with significant increases in cardiac
morbidity, haematologic morbidity, amniotic fluid
embolus, pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, postpartum
haemorrhage, prolonged hospital stay, the need for
obstetric intervention, hysterectomy and blood
transfusion. Multiple gestation pregnancies are
associated with an increased risk of morbidity for the
mother. This should be taken into consideration in
antenatal care of these women.