Mothers who have multiple births and their babies
Multiple births are births of more than one baby from a single pregnancy, and include twins, triplets and higher order multiples. This section focuses on mothers who had a multiple birth and babies born as part of a multiple birth.
While considered higher risk, most multiple pregnancies have positive outcomes for mothers and babies. However, women who have multiple births, and their babies, are at increased risk of certain conditions, including pre-eclampsia, anaemia, gestational diabetes, post-partum haemorrhage, pre-term birth, low birthweight, twin–twin transfusion syndrome and developmental delay. Families with multiple births may also experience financial stress, social isolation, and difficulties in accessing appropriate education (TRA 2019).
Additional care for families who have twins or other multiples is essential to eliminate or manage complications associated with multiple pregnancies. Appropriate support is crucial, from early pregnancy through to the early years of the babies’ lives, including frequent antenatal care visits, access to specialist obstetric and paediatric care and access to services to support child development (TRA 2019).
The number of multiple births in Australia each year is small and has remained relatively stable at around 2 to 3% of all births since 2011 (2.9% (8,362 births) in 2023).
In 2023, of this small proportion, almost all multiple births (98%) were twins, while the remaining 2% were other multiples (that is, triplets, quadruplets or higher).
Mothers who had a multiple birth
In 2023, mothers who had a multiple pregnancy accounted for 1.5% (4,156) of all women who gave birth. This proportion has ranged between 1.4% and 1.6% since 2010.
Figure 1 presents trend data for women who had a multiple birth gave birth, by selected maternal characteristics, between 2010 (or earliest available year of data) and 2023.
Figure 1: Proportion of women who had a multiple birth, by selected topic
Line graph of proportion of women who had a multiple birth by selected topics between 2010 (or earliest available year of data) and 2023.
In 2023, most mothers of multiples attended an antenatal visit in the first trimester (83%), this proportion has been increasing since 2013 (69%). Most mothers of multiples also had 5 or more antenatal visits (95%), which has been stable since 2018 (fluctuating between 94-95%).
Over half of mothers of multiples had no labour, and this proportion has increased over time (49% in 2010 compared with 60% in 2023). Mothers of multiples therefore had a high rate of caesarean sections which has also increased, from 68% in 2010 to 75% in 2023.
Babies born as part of a multiple birth
In 2023, babies born as part of a multiple pregnancy accounted for 2.9% (8,362) of all births. This proportion has ranged between 2.7% and 3.1% since 2010.
Figure 2 presents trend data for babies born as part of a multiple birth, by selected baby characteristics, between 2010 (or earliest available year of data) and 2023.
Figure 2: Proportion of liveborn babies born as part of a multiple birth, by selected topic
Line graph of babies born as part of a multiple birth by selected topics between 2010 (or earliest available year of data) and 2023.
Most babies from multiple births had an Apgar score of 7–10 at 5 minutes (94%), indicating that they have adapted well post-birth, which has fluctuated between 94% and 96% since 2010.
More than half of babies in multiple births were born low birthweight (54%) and almost two-thirds were born pre-term (63%), including babies who were both low birthweight and pre-term. The proportion of babies from multiple births with a low birthweight has fluctuated between 52% and 57% since 2010, whereas the proportion of pre-term babies has increased from 58% in 2010 and has ranged between 63% and 67% over the period 2013 to 2023.
As a result, in 2023 62% of multiple births were admitted to SCN or NICU, and 43% had hospital stays of 6 days or more. Over time the proportion of babies from multiple births:
- admitted to SCN or NICU fluctuated between 64% and 69% but in recent years it has decreased to 62%. Correspondingly, in recent years the proportion not admitted to SCN/NICU has increased
- staying 6 days or more has generally decreased from 2010 (55%) to 2023 (43%) with a corresponding increase in the proportion staying 2 to 3 days (12% in 2010 to 26% in 2023).
For more information on:
- women who gave birth by plurality and state and territory, see National Perinatal Data Collection annual update data tables 2.24
- births by gestational age and plurality, see National Perinatal Data Collection annual update data tables 3.8
- livebirths by birthweight and plurality, see National Perinatal Data Collection annual update data tables 3.11
- births by presentation and plurality, see National Perinatal Data Collection annual update data tables 3.13
- births by method of birth plurality, see National Perinatal Data Collection annual update data tables 3.14
- mothers who had a multiple birth and their babies by selected maternal and baby characteristics, see National Perinatal Data Collection annual update data visualisations table 6.4.
References
TRA (Twins Research Australia) (2019) Multiple perspectives: what support do multiple birth families need to live happy and healthy lives, TRA, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, accessed 21 June 2022.