Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-mkpzs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-25T05:37:15.687Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Increasing Trend in the Monozygotic Twinning Rate

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2014

W.M.A. Bressers ,
A.W. Eriksson ,
P.J. Kostense  and
P. Parisi
W.M.A. Bressers
Affiliation:
Institute of Human Genetics, The Netherlands
A.W. Eriksson*
Affiliation:
Institute of Human Genetics, The Netherlands
P.J. Kostense
Affiliation:
Department of Theory of Medicine, Epidemiology and Biostatistic, Medical Faculty, Free University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
P. Parisi
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, Second University of Rome Medical School, and The Gregor Mendel Institute for Medical Genetics and Twin Research, Rome
*
Institute of Human Genetics, Medical Faculty, Free University, Van der Boechorststraat 7, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Recent changes in the estimated incidence of monozygotic twinning in 15 European populations are described. The overall trend was an increase in the monozygotic twinning rate (MZTR) since the 1960s, particularly in those countries in which the use of oral contraceptives (OC) was widespread. A slower increase or even a decrease in the MZTR was observed in countries with low use of OC. Some countries, eg, Sweden, demonstrated an unexpectedly sharp increase since the 1960s. In Poland and the Federal Republic of Germany the MZTR was already strongly increasing as early as in the 1950s, clearly before the introduction of the pill. The influence of several other factors on the MZTR is discussed, such as toxic and teratogenic agents, pelvic infection diseases caused by the use of intrauterine devices, the increased use of ovulation inducers and neuroleptics as well as changes in the registration of perinatal deaths.

Keywords

Monozygotic twinning rateLongitudinal trendOral contraceptives
Type
Research Article
Information
Acta geneticae medicae et gemellologiae: twin research , Volume 36 , Issue 3 , July 1987 , pp. 397 - 408
Copyright
Copyright © The International Society for Twin Studies 1987

References

REFERENCES

1.Allen van, MI, Smith, DW, Shepard, TH (1983): Twin reversed arterial perfusion (TRAP) sequence. Seminars in Perinatology 4:285–293.Google Scholar
2.Arey, LB (1923): The cause of tubal pregnancy and tubal twinning. Am J Obstet Gynecol 5:163–167.Google Scholar
3.Armitage, P (1955): Tests for linear trends in proportions and frequencies. Biometrics 11:375–386.Google Scholar
4.Barnes, AB, Grover, JW, Sudduth, SS (1968): Simultaneous extra – and intrauterine pregnancy. Obstet Gynecol 31:50–52.Google Scholar
5.Benirschke, K, Kim, CK (1973): Multiple pregnancies. N Engl J Med 288:1276–1284.Google Scholar
6.Berent, J (1982): Family planning in Europe and USA in the 1970s. WFS, Comparative Studies 20:11–13.Google Scholar
7.Bomsel-Helmreich, O, Papiernik-Berkhauer, E (1976): Delayed ovulation and monozygotic twinning. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 25:73–76.Google Scholar
8.Bracken, MB (1979): Oral contraception and twinning: An epidemiologie study. Am J Obstet Gynecol 133:432–434.Google Scholar
9.Bulmer, MG (1970): Biology of Twinning in Man. Oxford: Clarendon Press.Google Scholar
10.Camus, M, Puissant, F, Degueldre, M, Englert, Y, Vekemans, M, Elkhazen, N, Phan Phi, H, Wilkin, P, Leroy, F (1985): Quadruplet IVF pregnancy after replacement of three embryos. 4th World Conference on IVF, Melbourne. Abstract handbook no. 215A.Google Scholar
11.Chavnik, W (1982): The rise in ectopic pregnancy – Exploration of possible reason. Int J Gynaecol Obstet 20:341–250.Google Scholar
12.Coutinho, EM, Maia, H, da Costa, RX (1973): The effect of a continuous low dosage progestin on tubal and uterine motility. Int J Fertil 18:161–166.Google Scholar
13.Dayani, YF, Shaer, JA (1979): Bilateral tubal pregnancy in the presence of an IUD: a case report. Int J Gynaecol Obstet 16:398–399.Google Scholar
14.Derom, R (1986): Triplets: placentation and zygosity. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Soc of Gynecol Invest, Toronto.Google Scholar
15.Doherty, JDHLancaster, PAL (1986): The secular trend of twinning in Australia, 1853-1982. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 35:61–76.Google Scholar
16.Edwards, RG (1984): The current situation of in-vitro fertilisation. IPPF Medical Bulletin 18:1–2.Google Scholar
17.Emery, AEH (1986): Identical twinning and oral contraception. Biol Soc 3:23–27.Google Scholar
18.Eriksson, AW (1964): Pituitary gonadotrophin and dizygotico twinning. Lancet 2:1298–1299.Google Scholar
19.Eriksson, AW (1973): Human twinning in and around the Åland Islands. Commentat Biol 64:1–159.Google Scholar
20.Ferm, VH, Hanover, NH (1969): Conjoined twinning in mammalian teratology. Arch Environ Health 19:353–357.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21.Fraser, FC, Walker, BE, Trasler, DG (1957): Experimental production of congenital cleft palate: genetic and environmental factors. Pediatrics Suppl 19:782.Google Scholar
22.Fredricsson, B, Björkman, N (1973): Morphologic alterations in the human oviduct epithelium induced by contraceptive steroids. Fertil Steril 24:19–30.Google Scholar
23.Harlap, S (1979): Multiple births in former oral contraceptive users. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 86: 557–562.Google Scholar
24.Harlap, S, Eldor, J (1980): Births following oral contraceptive failures. Obstet Gynaecol 55:447–452.Google ScholarPubMed
25.Hémon, D, Berger, C, Lazar, P (1981): Twinning following oral contraceptive discontinuation. Int J Epidemiol 10:319–328.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
26.Imaizumi, Y, Inouye, E (1984): Multiple birth rates in Japan: further analysis. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 33:107–114.Google ScholarPubMed
27.Jongbloet, PH (1980): Monozygotic twinning, structural defeets, and syndromes “of obscure etiology”. J Pediatr 97:868–869.Google Scholar
28.Kaufman, MH, O'Shea, KS (1978): Induction of monozygotic twinning in the mouse. Nature 276:707–708.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
29.Landauer, W (1957): Phenocopies and genotype with special reference to sporadically occurring developmental variants. Am Naturalist 91:79–90.Google Scholar
30.Layde, PM, Erikson, JD, Falek, A, McCarthy, BJ (1980): Congenital malformations in twins. Am J Hum Genet 32:69–78.Google Scholar
31.Livingston, JE, Poland, BJ (1980): A study of spontaneously aborted twins. Teratology 21:139–148.Google Scholar
32.Macourt, DC, Stewart, P, Zaki, M (1982): Multiple pregnancy and fetal abnormalities in association with oral contraceptive usage. Austr NZ J Obstet Gynaecol 22:25–28.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
33.Maruffo, CA, Casavilla, F, Van Nynatten, B, Perez, V (1974): Modifications of the human endometrial fine structure induced by low-dose progestogen therapy. Fertil Steril 25:778–787.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
34.Myrianthopoulos, NC (1976): Congenital malformations in twins. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 25: 331–335.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
35.Myrianthopoulos, NC (1978): Congenital malformations: The contribution of twin studies. Birth Defects 14:151–165.Google Scholar
36.National Central Bureau of Statistics (1979): Urval, Nordstedts Tryckeri, Stockholm 23. WFS.Google Scholar
37.Parisi, P, Caperna, G (1981): The changing incidence of twinning: One century of Italian statistics. In Gedda, L, Parisi, P, Nance, WE (eds): Twin Research 3: Twin Biology and Multiple Pregnancy. New York: Alan R Liss, pp 35–48.Google Scholar
38.Parisi, P, Caperna, G (1982): Twinning rates, fertility, and industrialization: a secular study. In Bonnet-Tamir, B (eds): Human Genetics, Part A: The Unfolding Genome. New York: Alan R Liss, pp 375–394.Google Scholar
39.Pinkerton, GD, Carey, HM (1976): Post-pill anovulation. Med J Aust 1:220–222.Google Scholar
40.Pollard, GN (1969): Multiple births in Australia, 1944-63. J Biosoc Sci 1:389–404.Google Scholar
41.Population Reports (1982): Oral Contraceptives in the 1980s. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.Google Scholar
42.Propping, P, Krüger, J (1976): Über die Häufigkeit von Zwillingsgeburten. Dtsch Med Wschr 101: 506–512.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
43.Renkonen, KO (1967): Is Weinberg's differential rule defective? Am J Hum Genet 30:277–280.Google Scholar
44.Rola-Janicki, A (1974): Multiple births in Poland 1945-1971. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 22:202–209.Google Scholar
45.Rothman, KJ (1977): Fetal loss, twinning and birth weight after oral contraception use. N Engl J Med 297:468–471.Google Scholar
46.Royal College of General Practitioners (1976): Oral contraception study: the outcome of pregnancy in former orai contraceptive users. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 83:608–616.Google Scholar
47.Schermers, JP (1984): Ectopic pregnancy. Thesis, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam.Google Scholar
48.Schinzel, AAGL, Smith, DW, Miller, JR (1979): Monozygotic twinning and structural defects. J Pediat 95:921–930.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
49.Smithells, RW (1981): Oral contraceptives and birth defects. Dev Med Chil Neurol 23:369–372.Google Scholar
50.Stockard, CR (1921): Developmental rate and structural expression, an experimental study of twins, “double monsters” and single deformities, and the interaction among embryonic organs during their origin and development. Am J Anatom 28:115–277.Google Scholar
51.Uchida, IA, Freeman, VCP, Gedeon, M, Goldmaker, J (1983): Twinning rate in spontaneous abortions. Am J Hum Genet 35:987–993.Google Scholar
52.Vessey, M, Meisler, L, Flaver, R, Yeates, D (1979): Outcome of pregnancy in women using different methods of contraception. Br J Obstet Gynaecol 86:548–556.Google Scholar
53.Vlietinck, RF (1986): Determination of the zygosity of twins. Thesis, Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven.Google Scholar
54.Vorherr, H, Vorherr, UF (1984): Suckling-induced delay of implantation and increased fecundity in rats. Gynaecol Obstet Invest 17:106–110.Google Scholar
55.Webster, F, Elwood, JM (1985): A study of the influence of ovulation stimulants and oral contraception on twin births in England. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 34:105–108.Google Scholar
56.Weinberg, W (1901): Beiträge zur Physiologie und Pathologie der Mehrlingsgeburten beim Menschen. Pflügers Arch Ges Physiol 88:346–430.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
57.Weström, L, Bengtsson, LPH, Mårdh, P-A (1981): Incidence, trends, and risks of ectopic pregnancy in a population of women. Br Med J 282:15–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
58.Windham, GC, Bjerkedal, T (1984): Malformations in twins and their siblings, Norway, 1967-70. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 33:87–95.Google Scholar
59.Witschi, E (1952): Overripeness of the egg as a cause of twinning and teratogenesis. A review. Cancer Res 12:763–786.Google Scholar
60.Yamamura, H, Fukui, K, Fukui, Y, Inamoto, M (1982): Effects of haloperidol, an antipsychotic agent, on preimplantation development in the mouse. Cong Anom 22:145–160.Google Scholar