Multiple pregnancies sound exciting but it is associated with high risk also. It increases the risk of complications. Vulnerability increases during multiple pregnancies. During multiple pregnancies the risk of death of woman during child birth greatly increases. In fact in such cases baby gets more prone to any harm during birth.

In case of multiple pregnancies a woman’s womb carries more than one child in it. So the greater the number of babies in the womb, the smaller they will be and low weight of babies during birth causes lot of problems. The most common complications include:

1. Preterm labor and birth – Maximum of the multiple pregnancies are premature (born before 37 weeks). Higher number of fetuses increases the risk for early birth. Premature babies are born before their bodies and organ systems have completely matured. These babies are often small, with low birth-weights (less than 2,500 grams or 5.5 pounds), and they need help for breathing, eating, fighting infection, and staying warm. Premature babies born before 28 weeks are especially vulnerable. Many of their organs may be underdeveloped to survive outside the mother’s uterus and may be too immature to function well.
2. Pregnancy-induced hypertension - Women with multiple fetuses are more likely to develop high blood pressure during pregnancy. It can enhance the chances of placental abruption (early detachment of the placenta).
3. Anemia - Anemia is very common in multiple pregnancies rather than in single pregnancy.
4. Birth defects - Multiple pregnancies produce babies with congenital abnormalities including neural tube defects, gastrointestinal, and heart abnormalities.
5. Miscarriage – First trimester miscarriage is more prominent in women having multiple pregnancies. This may or may not be accompanied by bleeding. The risk of pregnancy loss is increased in later trimesters.
6. Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome - Twin-to-twin syndrome occurs during twin pregnancy. In this blood vessels remain inter-connected within the placenta and so divert blood from one fetus to the other. It occurs in about 15 percent of twins with a shared placenta.
7. Abnormal amounts of amniotic fluid - Amniotic fluid abnormalities are more common in multiple pregnancies, especially for twins that share a placenta.
8. Cesarean delivery - Abnormal fetal positions in multiple pregnancies increase the chances of cesarean birth.
9. Postpartum hemorrhage - The large placental area and over-distended uterus can cause mother at risk for bleeding after delivery in many multiple pregnancies.

In case of multiple pregnancies extra care is required. Additional ultrasounds should be done to monitor the development of fetuses. Multiple pregnancies are complicated and if not cared properly, can prove to be really harmful to the mother and to the baby.