Ayşe KIRBAŞ, Şevki ÇELEN, Turhan ÇAĞLAR, Yaprak ÜSTÜN

Antenatal management of twin anemia-polycythemia sequence

Twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) and recently discovered twin anemia-polycythemia sequence (TAPS) are well-known severe complications of monochorionic pregnancies which are associated with placental anastomoses. TAPS may occur spontaneously with a prevalence of 3% to 5% in monochorionic pregnancies. It also can occur iatrogenically after laser treatment of TTTS in 2% to 13% of monochorionic pregnancies. Optimal perinatal management for TAPS has not been established yet. It has been reported that early well-timed diagnosis of the disease is very important for reducing fetal adverse events Because of the rarity, the literature is limited to the description of small series or case reports of twins affected by TAPS. Here, we describe diagnosis and management of TAPS case that was diagnosed after laser treatment of TTTS and review the literature about clinical characteristics including clinical features, prenatal characteristics, diagnosis, treatments and short-term outcomes of the TAPS.

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