Summary. A study of 1045 twin gestations with regard to known or likely zygosity and the incidence of pre-eclampsia/eclampsia failed to reveal differences between known dizygous twins and like-sex 'presumed' and 'estimated' monozygous twins except in the 'estimated' data for multigravidae. There was a threefold increase in the incidence for twins as opposed to singleton pregnancies. These results are discussed in relation to increased conceptus-mother antigenic differences. It is suggested that the risk of gestosis in twin pregnancy involves more than a summation of that operating in two singleton pregnancies.It has been suggested that genetic incompatibility between mother and fetus may be a factor in the aetiology of pre-eclampsia (Penrose, 1946;Kalmus, 1946;Platt, Stewart, and Emery, 1958). Epidemiological evidence has been provided by Stevenson et al (1971) in a study of consanguineous marriages in the Middle East. They also recorded twin data which pointed to a higher incidence of toxaemia in unlike-sex as opposed to like-sex twin pregnancies. As all unlike-sex twins are dizygous (DZ) and a large proportion of like-sex twins are monozygous (MZ), antigenic differences between mother and conceptus would be more likely to be expressed in unlike-sex twin pregnancies. Stevenson et al considered that the higher incidence with unlike-sex twins could be attributed to this. They extrapolated their data on the basis of Weinberg's hypothesis involving the assumption that for every pair of unlike-sex DZ twins there is one like-sex DZ pair. The estimated differences in the incidence of pre-eclampsia based on this were significant at P values of <0.05 to 0.001, the syndrome being commoner in the presumed DZ cases. They regarded these findings as 'suggestive'.This report concerns a review of twin deliveries in one hospital with regard to zygosity and the incidence of late pregnancy hypertension. MethodThe records of twin gestations from 1953 to 1973 in-clusive at Leeds Maternity Hospital were studied.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2025 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.