The aim of this study was to compare the incidence and clinical features of cervical incompetence between singleton and twin pregnancies in women with newly diagnosed cervical incompetence.
METHODS:
We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 64 womenwho were diagnosed with cervical incompetence for the first time during pregnancy and delivered between 1994 and 2004. Cervical incompetence was defined by the presence of painless cervical dilatation during mid-trimester with either bulging amniotic membranes through the external cervical os or shortened cervical length (<2 cm) with funneling on transvaginal ultrasound.
The incidence of cervical incompetence in twin pregnancies was seven times greater than in singleton pregnancies. Although the onset of cervical incompetence was not different in the groups, prolongation of pregnancy, after emergent cerclage, was less likely in the twin pregnancies compared to singleton pregnancies, due to a more advanced cervical change at the time of diagnosis.