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. 2004 Dec;21(12):427–429. doi: 10.1007/s10815-004-8758-2

Monozygotic Twin Birth After the Transfer of a Cleavage Stage Embryo Resulting from a Single Pronucleated Oocyte

Daniel Dasig 1,✉, Jennifer Lyon 1, Barry Behr 1, Amin A Milki 1
PMCID: PMC3455616  PMID: 15704517

Abstract

Purpose: To present a case involving the transfer of a single pronucleated oocyte resulting in a monozygotic twin pregnancy.

Method: A descriptive case report of a single patient.

Results: The patient conceived and was found to have a monochorionic diamnionic pregnancy which resulted in the birth of normal identical twin boys at 32 weeks of gestation.

Conclusions: The case report addresses an issue that has not received proper attention in the literature. It illustrates that observing a single PN in an oocyte at fertilization check should not be an absolute deterrent to transferring the resulting embryo even in an older patient with a high FSH level. This report also suggests that single observations, especially at the assessment of fertilization, in the IVF laboratory are limited when evaluating embryo potential and normalcy.

Keywords: Embryo transfer, IVF, monozygotic twin, single pronucleus

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