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Birth Defects in Twins: Study in a Spanish Population

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2014

M.A. Ramos-Arroyo
M.A. Ramos-Arroyo*
Affiliation:
Department of Genetics, Hospital Virgen del Camino, Pamplona, Spain
*
Servicio de Genética, Hospital Virgen del Camino, C/Irunlarrea s/n, 31008 Pamplona, Spain.

Abstract

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The risk for specific defects among twins compared to singletons was studied using data collected by the Spanish Collaborative Study of Congenital Malformations (ECEMC). A total of 136 twins had a major and/or minor congenital defect. The overall rate of congenital defects in twins (2.37%) did not deviate significantly from the rate in singletons (2.21%). Like-sex (LS) and male-male (MM) twin pairs had a slightly higher rate of birth defects than unlike-sex (US) and female-female (FF) pairs, respectively. Defects of the central nervous system, cardiovascular system and genitourinary system were significantly more frequent in LS twins than in singletons, with relative risks of 2.8, 2.5 and 1.6, respectively. No significantly increased risk was found among US twins. Among defects of the central nervous system, the rates of anencephaly, encephalocele and hydrocephaly were significantly higher in total and LS twins; however, no significantly increased risk for spina bifida was observed when compared to singletons. MM twins were also 1.9 times more likely to have hypospadias, but the risk among males of male-female (FM) pairs was decreased.

Keywords

Birth defectTwinningNeural tube defectHypospadiasEpidemiology
Type
Research Article
Information
Acta geneticae medicae et gemellologiae: twin research , Volume 40 , Issue 3-4 , October 1991 , pp. 337 - 344
Copyright
Copyright © The International Society for Twin Studies 1991

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