- my iParenting
- quick clicks
- twins today articles
- twins today q&a
- community & groups
- research baby names
- prepare a birth plan
- content channels
- ip channel rss feeds
- read birth stories
- read parenting stories
- recommended books
- e-newsletters
- safety recalls
- ip diaries
- ip store
- mom of the month
- dad of the month
- editor's letter
- letters to the editor
From Our Sponsors
- e-newsletters
- Sign up to receive our free weekly e-newsletters
- award-winning products
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
Twin-to-Twin
Transfusion Syndrome
When Two or More Babies
Share a Placenta
Share a Placenta
By Alexandria Powell
We don't know exactly why TTTS occurs in some monochorionic pregnancies, Dr. Luks says. It was once believed that when monochorionic twins had a lot of vascular communication through the placenta, they would balance each other out, and when they didn't, they would have a higher risk of developing TTTS. However, that's not necessarily true.
"What we do know is that the diameter and the flow through each vessel probably matters a lot," Dr. Luks says. "So if you have one fairly large vessel with a high flow of blood from one to the other, that's probably going to be the one that is going to cause TTTS."
Hormonal factors may play a part in the disease's progression as well, Dr. Luks says. "If you lose blood, for instance, your body will start secreting certain hormones to make sure that you conserve fluid and conserve urine, so that you don't become hypotensive," he says. "And if you consume too much fluid, or if you get too much fluid through an IV, the opposite is going to happen. Hormones will regulate that as well."
In TTTS, the donor twin is losing a lot of blood to the recipient twin, so his hormones kick in to try to conserve as much fluid as possible. Unfortunately, those hormones will also cross to the recipient twin, causing the recipient to retain even more fluid. More research is needed in this area, Dr. Luks says, and more is being done.
Without treatment, the chances of both twins surviving severe TTTS is as low as 10 percent, and the chances that one will survive hover around 30 percent. Thankfully, the last 20 years have seen huge advances in treatment options.
There are two main treatment options for TTTS. In amnioreduction, excess fluid is removed from around the recipient twin. The reason this works isn't entirely clear, but it is believed that removing the excess fluid decreases the risk of rupture of the membranes and preterm labor, and may help reduce pressure on the umbilical cord of the recipient twin, thus improving blood flow between the recipient and the placenta.
Want to see more?
Comments
There are no comments for this article yet.Be the first to 
|
Post As:
|
||
| Enter your comment below: | ||
| Title | ||
| Comment Text | ||
| CAPTCHA | ||
| Please note that any comments submitted become the property of Disney Family / iParenting and can be edited and posted at our discrection. | ||