The guidance follows a 60 per cent rise in the incidence of multiple births in England and Wales over the past three decades, from 10 women per 1,000 giving birth in 1980 to 16 per 1,000 in 2009.
?This rising multiple birth rate is due mainly to increasing use of assisted reproduction techniques, including IVF,? says Nice.
Women expecting multiple babies are at higher risk of miscarrying and having high blood pressure, as well as suffering stillbirths or having babies with congenital abnormalities.
As a result, the watchdog says that these women need ?more monitoring and increased contact? with midwives and doctors as well as ?increased need for psychological support?.
Nice recommends they should be seen at least seven times by an ?experienced multidisciplinary team? including obstetricians, midwives and ultrasonographers to provide regular checks on the progress of their pregnancy. They should try to find out if the babies are sharing a placenta, which can increase the risk of complications still further.
Department of Health figures show there were 54 ?selective terminations? in 2008; 71 in 2009 and 85 last year.
The most recent annual report stated: ?In 2010, there were 85 abortions which involved selective terminations. In 51 cases, two fetuses were reduced to one fetus.
?Over three quarters (78 per cent) of the selective terminations were performed under ground E [risk that the child would be born handicapped].?
Nice does not suggest that health professionals give any similar warnings about the risks of abortion for women expecting one baby.
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