Are You Amazed or Alarmed by Number of Multiples Born?

February 26, 2009

Within six weeks, four sets of quadruplets were born at Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix. The Arizona hospital has delivered more quads than any other in the country. These days it's not unusual to see more than one set of multiples on a daily basis. Does this amaze or alarm you?

34 Comments

buffyanne 3 years 23 weeks

Why do we assume that people using advanced reproductive treatments, possibly resulting in multiples, cannot afford to raise them? Apparently they are also vain (not wanting the wear of more than one pregnancy) and selfish to want to have children with their partner. As RunninginBoston said, most people aren't seeking multiples. The instances we are hearing about are extreme and rare. It is unfair to judge an entire group of people based on a few individuals. Clearly, there are broad misunderstandings of infertility.

mstrauss 4 years 12 weeks

While I think that it is such a miracle, I have also heard about women who can have children naturally but go with IVF because they want multiples...basically, just get them all out at once. I think that is pretty crazy. During an economy like this, and seeing a woman like "octomom" who can't even afford to have that many children and lives in a 3 bedroom, it upsets me to see so many people having such large numbers at once. You just need to think responsibly and if you can afford to have those children and raise them right, go for it. Not everyone out there is going to get a TV show so you should think about that first! Money won't be flying at you and Oprah won't be having you on your show.

mhg 4 years 12 weeks

schnappy cat, you could've potentially had two sets of identical twin! wowsers. and most definitely, most IVF twins are fraternal. it's just an interesting phenomenom. a friend of a friend is having TRIPLETS b/c one embryo split into 2 identical twins and the other took as well. and another friend of friend did IVF and is having identical twin boys.

schnappycat 4 years 12 weeks

Wow, mhg. I hadn't realized this since it seems most twins born from IVF are fraternal. I had 2 blastocysts transferred and assumed if I had two they would be non-identical. Guess I could have been wrong!

mhg 4 years 12 weeks

actually, there is research that IVF increases the chances of identical twins. i had time to look it up and apparently, the IVF process seems to stimulate embryos to split into identical twins, especially when 5-day-old embryos – blastocysts – are used. these give an identical twinning rate five times higher than for natural pregnancy. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6261430.stm

SweetnLow 4 years 12 weeks

Alarmed! This is dangerous! Don't get me wrong- I feel for people with IF and believe that they need and deserve help, but not at the risk of these HOMS. There is a reason why the human body doesn't routinely naturally conceive 3 or more babies at a time. But the media doesn't report about all the horrible things that happen with multiples, only the happy outcomes- so most people don't know just how high risk multiples really are. Sure, some make it- but a high number don't. I'm due in 2 weeks (Mid March). I know a lady who was due with quads a full month after me (April) had her babies in DECEMBER! All but one of them has passed away, and that one may have cerebal palsy and require life long care. And sadly, that is pretty normal for quads. There really needs to be more regulation on fertility treatments.

RunninginBoston 4 years 12 weeks

Just as a reminder, only the crazy stories make the news. Most parents don't want multiples. All of my friends who had to go through fertility treatments were praying to only have singletons because the health risks for the babies are so much higher, even for twins.

jessie 4 years 12 weeks

as long as those family can support their kids..more power to them. but i do think docs should limit how many they are implanting...more then 3 at a time...thats too much i feel. to hard on mom and too hard on the babies. carrying twins alone is hard on moms/babies. but..there are just some folks out there who..like someone said above.."lets just get it all done now and be over with it.." wierd way of thinking...but hey..they gotta go home with them all! :) no more sleepy for them!!

skigurl 4 years 12 weeks

as long as the families can take care of them, i think it's great - but when it's someone like Octomommy who can't support her family, well that's alarming

momma tikita 4 years 12 weeks

Wow thats a lot of babies! I agree with what MACgirl said. Its hard to tell someone to just adopt because many women want to experience carrying their babies. Im happy that certain women who couldn't before are now able to. I just wish them luck!

RunninginBoston 4 years 12 weeks

IVF and other fertility treatments are required to be covered by insurance in MA. Don't know about other states. Another thing is that older women are naturally more likely to have twins and the majority of IVF patients are older, so it's a double whammy. MA has the highest concentration of twins in the country right now according to Boston Magazine: http://www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/double_trouble/ http://www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/loves_labors_lost/

schnappycat 4 years 12 weeks

Your friend was very lucky, Caterpillar! Yeah, I get that, macgirl. But I am alarmed that any doctor would even consider IVF on a fertile couple. I guess I didn't realize that was going on. Plus, why would you want to do that to yourself if you can get pregnant normally? That boggles my mind.

schnappycat 4 years 12 weeks

Your friend was very lucky, Caterpillar!Yeah, I get that, macgirl. But I am alarmed that any doctor would even consider IVF on a fertile couple. I guess I didn't realize that was going on. Plus, why would you want to do that to yourself if you can get pregnant normally? That boggles my mind.

CaterpillarGirl 4 years 12 weeks

Twins, dont share the same amniotic sac,......Mo-Mo twins do and that occures only 1% of the time, and is a higher risk in IVF implantation because of the amount of embryos implanted. My friends IVF was covered by insurance.

CaterpillarGirl 4 years 12 weeks

macgirl 4 years 12 weeks

argh, Schapps I didn't mean it that way. I even tried to clarify that the "getting it out of the way" people were fertile couples using methods normally reserved for couples that had trouble conceiving.

schnappycat 4 years 12 weeks

Caterpillar, I still don't think insurance covers IVF in most cases. I know some states cover it and certain professions/unions, but it's not very widespread in this country ASAIK. I know I had to shell out $14K for my cycle. And Greggie is right--identical twins via IVF is just as likely than with a "normal" conception. Most IVF twins are fraternal. In my case, IVF was the only way I could get pregnant due to factors with both me and my husband, so I am grateful for the science. I certainly (and most truly infertile women would agree) never saw it as "getting it out of the way," especially since I had "only" one baby. I also agree with Greggie in that the only really alarming thing is the unethical doctors implanting more than the recommended number of embryos.

schnappycat 4 years 12 weeks

Caterpillar, I still don't think insurance covers IVF in most cases. I know some states cover it and certain professions/unions, but it's not very widespread in this country ASAIK. I know I had to shell out $14K for my cycle.And Greggie is right--identical twins via IVF is just as likely than with a "normal" conception. Most IVF twins are fraternal.In my case, IVF was the only way I could get pregnant due to factors with both me and my husband, so I am grateful for the science. I certainly (and most truly infertile women would agree) never saw it as "getting it out of the way," especially since I had "only" one baby. I also agree with Greggie in that the only really alarming thing is the unethical doctors implanting more than the recommended number of embryos.

princess_eab 4 years 12 weeks

Alarmed. The US needs to take cases of multiples seriously like other countries do - implanting anything over twins or triplets is simply unethical.

runningesq 4 years 12 weeks

Only if they can take care of them.

macgirl 4 years 12 weeks

@litbear221 the reference to "get it out of the way" was about a post a bit back where people were undergoing fertility treatment to have multiples on purpose. Some were doing it for less wear and tear on their bodies and others were doing it so they could have their entire families and then get past the infant stage and get back to "normal" faster. There was a quote from a snotty woman that said something along the lines of "I'm vacationing in Hawaii while my girlfriends are still changing diapers". I think that is very different than IVF. As far as there being kids that need to be adopted, that just doesn't work for everyone. My husband is adopted and felt the need to have a real blood relative. If we couldn't have had a baby on our own we wouldn't have adopted as an alternative.

macgirl 4 years 12 weeks

litbear221 4 years 12 weeks

i have to agree with macgirl. This trend can't be good. How long are these new IVF couples actually trying before they run to do IVF. I think its great that people are able to have children of their own, but there are SOOOOO many kids who need to be adopted. I can't believe these people are doing it to "get it out of the way," there is no way in hell i would want 3 brothers and sisters the same age as me, where is the fun in that?

macgirl 4 years 12 weeks

There's an awful lot of messing with mother nature going on these days. I'm happy that people that were once able to not conceive on their own are having this fantastic opportunity to have their own biological babies. On the other hand there seems to be a need to do some sort of regulating of it. What disturbs me more is people who ARE fertile going under fertility treatments to have multiples so they can "get it out of the way".

macgirl 4 years 12 weeks

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