Tuesday, April 27, 2010

What if Baby B is breech?

I realize this blog is pretty sparse and random. It serves mainly as a place for me to put my answers to FAQs that expectant twin moms often have. (Not that I'm an expert by any means. ;) But with the longer answers, it keeps me from retyping it every time it gets asked. ;)) One question that comes up pretty regularly is, "How should I deliver if Baby B is breech?" My Baby A was vertex the whole third trimester, but Baby B kept flipping back and forth between vertex and breech. Another twin mom led me to the following resources which helped me make my decision:

Breech extraction versus external cephalic version

Operative Obstetrics

Vaginal Breech Delivery of the Second Twin

Basically, if you have a doctor who is experienced in and comfortable with performing breech extractions (which can be the tricky part! ;)), breech extraction tends to be the safest delivery option for a breech second twin. It is definitely preferable to manual version (trying to turn the baby from the outside). C-section is also a fine option but not always necessary.

My babies were both vertex going into my scheduled induction. However, B flipped to breech before it was his turn to come out! I was very thankful I had transferred to an OB who was comfortable doing a breech extraction, because otherwise I would have had both a vaginal delivery and a C-section to recover from! The breech extraction went well and quickly, and our babies were born with no complications.