A comparison of maternal and perinatal outcome between in vitro fertilization and spontaneous dichorionic-diamniotic twin pregnancies

Objective: To compare the maternal and neonatal outcome of dichorionic diamniotic in vitro fertilization (IVF) twin and spontaneous twin pregnancies.

Material and methods: Maternal and fetal data of all consecutive dichorionic-diamniotic twin pregnancies delivered in our institution between January 2009 and May 2015 were abstracted from medical records and pregnancy outcome of IVF twin was compared to spontaneous twin.

Results: Overall 708 twin pregnancies (449 IVF and 259 spontaneous) were included. Women in the IVF group were 2 years older and more frequently nulliparous. The rate of pregnancy induced hypertension and preeclampsia (PIH/PET) was three times higher in the IVF group than in the spontaneous group. The rate of preterm births, before 37 weeks of gestation and the rate of cesarean section were higher in the IVF group. These results were confirmed by multivariate analysis. The neonatal outcome was similar in both the groups except for a lower mean newborn birthweight in the IVF group.

Conclusion: Women with IVF twins are at a significantly higher risk of having preterm births, PIH/PET and cesarean section but there was no significant adverse effect on neonatal outcome except for a lower mean newborn birth weight.