VBAC with Twins: Half of the Women Succeeded

A study from the U.S. looks at VBAC with twins. 380,095 twin births were included in the study. The researchers wanted to determine the success rate for women trying to give birth vaginally after a previous c-section (VBAC). The results were published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The researchers looked at twin pregnancies in the United States between 2013 and 2015. All women expecting twins who attempted a VBAC were included in the study.

7570 women attempted a VBAC

The researchers looked at how the women delivered, the mother’s age, body mass index, race and number of previous c-sections. They did that to explore whether or not there seemed to be a correlation between those characteristics and a successful VBAC. 380,095 twin births were included in the study. 16 percent of those women had a history of previous cesarean delivery. Of the women who had a previous c-section, 7570 women attempted a vaginal birth – that’s 12,4 percent of the women.

Almost half of the women had a succesful VBAC

The twin VBAC success rate was 47 percent. Women with only one previous c-section were more likely to succeed compared to women who had two previous c-sections. 51 percent of the women who had only one previous c-section had a successful VBAC compared to 33.5 percent of women who had two previous c-sections. There were no association between age or race in relation to having a successful VBAC.

Looking for VBAC with twins stories? Read Lisa Krnyaich’s story in our Twin Birth Stories section and Renee Cowley’s story in our TTTS and TAPS Stories section.