In Multiple births, more than one baby is delivered at the same time of delivery. The number of eggs released from the ovary determines the type of twins, triplets or more number of babies that the mother will carry and eventually deliver.

Types Of Twins From Multiple Births

Twins can be classified into two broad categories. First is identical twins or monozygotic and the other is fraternal twins or dizygotic. In case of identical twins, multiples are formed from a single egg which divides into two halves, while fraternal twins are conceived from two or more different eggs. The identical twins are indistinguishable from one another. They have the same genetic and physical characteristics, same chromosomes, same color of eyes, same blood group as well as the same sex. Fraternal twins, on the other hand, are just like any other siblings from the same parents and can be of different sex as well. However, between the two, cases of fraternal twins are more common.

Reasons For Multiple Births

In the last 20 years, USA has experienced a rise in the number of multiple childbirths. According to a recent pregnancy study conducted between the time period 1980 and 1997, there has been a 52% increase in the number of twin child births and 300% increase in the number of births with more than two babies.

The following reasons can be cited for the increasing number of Multiple Births:

Heredity / Family Background: Women with a family history of Multiple Births are more prone to deliver multiple babies as compared to women who have no such family history.

Race: Race and origin of a community also contribute to multiple childbirths. For example, African women experience more cases of multiple childbirths as compared to women belonging to other races.
 
Frequency of Pregnancy: Chances of having more than one baby in the same delivery increase if a woman is pregnant more than once. So, more the number of times a woman conceives, more are the chances of having multiple children.
 
Age of the Expecting Mother: Age also is a significant determinant of the kind of delivery - single or multiple childbirths. The more the age of the expecting mother, more are the chances of delivering multiple babies.
 
Medication: Drugs / medication used to treat infertility sometimes release more than one egg from the ovary of the woman leading to the birth of multiple children at the same time.

In case of multiple deliveries, the pattern of labor and delivery is far more complex as compared to a single delivery. Multiple births, if handled under the guidance of a trained physician and with care and all the necessary precautions, can be a wonderful experience with more than one precious and endearing baby to brighten a woman's life.