Abstract
Aim: There is a paucity of information on vitamin D status of women with twin pregnancy and their newborns. This case-control study compared maternal and neonatal vitamin-D status in twin versus singleton pregnancies. Methods: Subjects included 50 women with twin pregnancy delivering at > 28 weeks and 50 gestational-agematched women with singleton pregnancy delivering during the same period. Maternal and neonatal serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D [25(OH) D] was compared between the two groups using the independent Student's ttest on log values. Serum albumin-adjusted calcium, inorganic phosphate, and intact parathormone levels were also compared. Results: Maternal vitamin-D deficiency (VDD; serum 25(OH) D < 30 nmol/L) was present in 90% of twin and 88% of singleton pregnancies. The prevalence of neonatal VDDwas 89% in twin and 74% in singleton pregnancies (P= 0.03). Maternal serum25(OH) Dwas lower in the twin group as compared to the singleton group (14.3 +/- 10.47 vs 18.5 +/- 12.36 nmol/L; P = 0.02). Mean serumcalcium, intact parathormone, and inorganic phosphate were comparable between the women in the two groups. Maternal and neonatal 25(OH) D showed positive correlation in the two groups (P < 0.001). Mean cord blood 25(OH) Dwas significantly lower in the twins than in singleton newborns (14.8 +/- 12.63 vs 22.6 +/- 16.68 nmol/L; P = 0.002). The difference persisted even after adjustment for birthweights and maternal serum 25(OH) D. Mean serum calcium was significantly lower in the twins. Conclusion: Twin newborns and their mothers have higher VDD as compared to singleton newborns and their mothers in the VDD population.