Conjoined twins fact poll

[Paige]

 

I, too, find it fascinating that my paternal grandmother had two sets of identical twins (one set had a genetic disorder), and I had identical twins as well. But I read over and over again that having identicals is not genetic.

 

I've read there's a genetic link to identicals through the male DNA. It's interesting that it's your paternal grandmother who had the identicals. Perhaps she inherited a trait from her father and passed it to your dad who passed it to you.

[Lucy the Valiant]

I am waiting for the "surprise discovery" that *some* ID's are genetically linked. No twins in all of our family back for a few generations, and boom - both my brother (well, his wife :) ) and I have ID twins (not MOMO's). No twins in SIL's family, either.

 

I fully realize that today's science believes there's no genetic link . . . I'm just saying that today's science and tomorrow's science are not always the same thing.

 

I love talking / studying / learning about twins. :)

[gracesteacher]

I have first hand experience in this matter. Well, sort of. Conjoined twins are ALWAYS identical. I had a monoamnionic/monochorionic twin pregnancy. Very rare. My medical records showed that if my egg did not split when it did, it was a matter of hours and my girls would have been conjoined. MOMO twins(nickname) is extremely rare. My egg decided to split last second. My girls shared the same sac with no dividing membrane. So the biggest risk of course, was cord entanglement. The only thing my GYN could do was monitor me very closely. But I could walk in and have an ultrasound, and the girls would be fine. But could walk out and one could die and I wouldn't even know it. After MOMO twins get to be larger, the cord entanglement risk goes down somewhat. But one wrong move on one twins part and...............Unfortunately for me, one of my identical MOMO twins did not make it. In a MOMO twin pregnancy, you cannot go "longer". If one twin dies, the other one cannot stay in your uterus as toxins will pass through your survivor. So the goal is to at least get them to 27 weeks so if one passes away, the other one could be saved. I went in for my last and final ultrasound on September 8th as I was scheduled for a C-section on Sept 9th, 1998. My other twin had passed away in utero and I did not know it. I had an emergency C-section at 29 weeks 6 days. My other daughter died from hydrops and congestive heart failure. She had a very, small thin cord. Due to the fact that my egg had split so late. I truly believe that my twin, Kari that died hung on long enough for my other daughter to come into the world. If Kari had died in utero before 24 weeks, my survivor would have never made it. My surviving twin is now 14. She knows all about Kari, and the issues surrounding her birth. She now sees the same GYN who delivered her. My office has never seen a case of MOMO twins, and they still have not to this day. My survivor beat all the odds. She spent over 2 months in NICU, weighed 2lbs 14 oz at birth, came home at 4 pounds 7 oz. Spent two months on oxygen and a heart monitor. I was told she would never walk or talk. Well, after lots of PT as a baby, she walked at 2 years old, talked at 15 months. And today, she figure skates and sings professionally. If anyone know of someone who has experienced the loss of a MOMO twin, both twins, or is pregnant with MOMO's, please get in touch with me and I can give you the name of a very good support group.

 

 

First i am sorry for your loss

 

My BFF has MOMO twin girls they are 9 now. If it was not for the fact she went into the hospital to be monitored from week 24 they would not be here as they were going to wait till she was 26 weeks. She had them at 25 weeks 1lb 9oz 1lb 14oz When the dr took them from her their cords were completely tangled and had only seconds per the dr. We live in a large population and that is the only MOMO babies they have had.

[Incognito]

FWIW, I said either, even though I know they would be identical. It was the "always" that caused me to vote otherwise. I find that in biology, "always" is generally impossible. :)

[lorilou]

I am waiting for the "surprise discovery" that *some* ID's are genetically linked. No twins in all of our family back for a few generations, and boom - both my brother (well, his wife :) ) and I have ID twins (not MOMO's). No twins in SIL's family, either.

 

I fully realize that today's science believes there's no genetic link . . . I'm just saying that today's science and tomorrow's science are not always the same thing.

 

I love talking / studying / learning about twins. :)

 

I also wonder if they will eventually discover some sort of genetic link to ID's as well. My husband's grandmother is an ID twin who gave birth to ID twins (1 is my FIL.) FIL's brother has a daughter who had ID twins. Who knows!

[mommaduck]

I also had read that identical twins were genetically though the fathers DNA. I had no idea the thinking on that had changed.

[mommaduck]

Ftr, I have identical twin sisters.

[Matryoshka]

Ok I'm not judging but am seriously asking. I thought the current understanding was that this was a genetic thing. That people were born with the wrong gender. How can this possibly be if two people have identical genes and therefore the same gender but one of them says he is the other gender? I don't get it.

 

There's another set of identical (but non-conjoined) twins that were in the news lately like this. Both born boys, but they are now adolescents and one has always identified as female, like from toddlerhood. That twin is now on hormone-supressing hormones and will have gender-reassignment surgery as soon as she's mature. There was an article with pictures, and she looks every bit the girl. The other one is happy being a boy.

 

I think gender identity is very complex. Even if twins are identical (or conjoined) their womb environment is not identical. It's actually more common in identical twins than frats for them to get different amounts of nutrients from the mother (like in twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome). It seems like there must be something that happens in the womb. An embryo with XY chromosomes will still develop as a girl if there is some defect with testosterone uptake. There's probably lots more subtle things going on we still know nothing about.