Ultrasound Breakthrough Helps Save Twins With Rare Syndrome

A nonsurgical blast of sound may offer new hope to some of the riskiest twin pregnancies. Doctors in London have tested a focused ultrasound technique to treat twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, or TTTS, a rare condition for a patient with child (or, in this case, children) in which identical twins sharing a placenta receive uneven blood flow—leaving one undersized and the other overburdened, placing both at risk, per the BBC. Clinicians used high-powered, precisely aimed ultrasound waves to heat and seal tiny placental blood vessels from outside the body.

Existing TTTS care typically involves needles and lasers inside the womb. In a small trial of 10 women, the procedure successfully blocked blood flow in 90% of targeted vessels and resulted in 12 of 20 twin infants surviving, with no reported side effects. Among them: Nancy and Margo, now 4, born at nearly 34 weeks after their mother, Brioney Garrett, underwent the 20-minute treatment.

Researchers from Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital say having a noninvasive alternative is "extremely exciting," but they stress that larger studies are needed before the method can move into routine use. TTTS affects an estimated 300 to 400 twin pregnancies each year in the UK. "I'm so grateful to the hospital team and to everyone involved in the research," Garrett says, per a release. "They saved my girls' lives."