Triplet births in the United States. An epidemic of high-risk pregnancies.

OBJECTIVE

To more precisely understand the changes in triplet births in recent years.

STUDY

DESIGN

Analysis of recent government and medical publications pertaining to triplets.

RESULTS

Triplet births are at much greater risk than singletons of poor birth outcomes. More than 9 of 10 triplet births are born preterm (< 37 completed weeks of gestation) as compared with < 1 of 10 singleton infants. The average weight of a triplet newborn (1,698 g) is one-half that of a singleton newborn (3,358 g). The infant death rate for triplet and other higher-order multiple births is 12 times higher than that for singletons (93.7 as compared with 7.8 infant deaths per 1,000 live births).

CONCLUSION

Based on their frequency of preterm birth, low birth weight and infant death rate, it is appropriate to characterize all triplet pregnancies as high risk.