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Twin and preterm births fell after change in IVF
BMJ 2005; 331 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.331.7513.0-c (Published 11 August 2005) Cite this as: BMJ 2005;331:0-c
The rate of twin births in Sweden after in vitro fertilisation fell from 29% in 1991 to 18.5% in 2001, corresponding to a reduction in preterm births of 72%. The trend follows the decision in the early 1990s to transfer two embryos instead of three to the uterus during in vitro fertilisation. From the Swedish medical birth register Källén and colleagues (p 382) identified 16 280 infants born by in vitro fertilisation between 1982 and 2001. The adjusted odds ratio for preterm birth after in vitro fertilisation was 4.6 in 1991 and 1.33 in 2001.
Credit: SIMON FRASER/SPL