Description

Improved neonatal care and nutrition have meant that many more babies from quadruplet and higher-order conceptions survive than in the past. In this book, the author brings together what is known from historical records and reports in the medical, psychological, and popular press on the lives of these children and the psychodevelopmental consequences of their multiple status. She points to the contribution that research studies on higher multiple sets could make to our understanding of genetic-environmental interactions and gives valuable methodological advice for those wishing to initiate such a study. Changes in social practices and medical knowledge are highlighted, various aspects of pregnancy and birth are discussed, and the practical and emotional problems faced by families of multiple sets are sensitively described. Appended to the book is an illustrated catalogue of quadruplet case reports gleaned from the literature, including birth details and postnatal histories.