"Twins or More" free workshop for expectant parents, February 12

A free, half-day workshop for expectant parents of “twins or more” will be held Saturday, February 12, in San Francisco.

The program will address the special challenges of pregnancies involving so-called “multiples” (more than one fetus).

The event will take place at the Jewish Community Center in San Francisco, 3200 California Street, from 8:30 am to 12:15 pm. Co-sponsors are UCSF Medical Center and UCSF Children’s Hospital.

Workshop pre-registration is required by calling 415-353-2667, and the deadline is February 7.  Parking is available on site. Free childcare will be available by pre-registration.

Speakers will include perinatologist Patty Robertson, MD, and newborn specialist Carol Miller, MD, as well as a midwife and a social worker. Two panels also will make presentations: one comprised of twins and one comprised of parents of twins.

Robertson is a UCSF professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences and Miller is a UCSF professor of pediatrics.

UCSF expertise for multiple births includes genetic testing, ultrasound and prenatal diagnosis of special complications, nutrition and social support for the mother, and postpartum support for mother and infants.

Because there is an increased risk of premature birth with multiples and their birth weights may be low, workshop participants will be introduced to the state-of-the-art facilities at UCSF Children’s Hospital for the care of premature newborns.

During the 1990s, the number of twin births in the US steadily rose to 114,307 in 1999. In 2002, more than 125,000 women gave birth to twins in the US, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For more information about the workshop, call the UCSF Women’s Health Great Expectations Program at 415-353-2667.