ID Twins that don't look alike?

Our Daughters (Tatum & Ally) were mo/di with one placenta. All the Dr and specialist said they were ID twins but do not look like.

Any other twins parents have similar stories?

Note - First time poster... please move if in wrong area.

Thanks,
Doug

 

Are they sure there was one placenta & not two fused together? How old are your girls? I know that with some ID twins it is easier to see differences than in others & that may change as they grow & mature.

:welcome: to Twinstuff!

 

Our boys were di/di and we thought at first that they were fraternal. My husband was still convinced of it at 15 months when we ordered a DNA test but by then, I was fairly certain they were ID. I won that bet.

The differences present at birth (obvious head shape difference, hair quantity, only one had some jaundice...) diminished over time but they are still easy to tell apart when they're together for anyone who spends a good deal of time with them. Identical does not mean they're indistinguishable. Now, if one is blonde and the other is a redhead, then I'd question it.

 

They were born on 7-Jan-10 @ 33weeks and 3 days (Tatum - 3lbs 3oz and Ally - 3lbs 11oz) I am 99.9% sure their was only 1 placenta because the Dr told us that baby B had a higher level of amniotic fluid than baby A. Baby A (Tatum) had a EA / TEF surgery done the next day and went successful. Tatum spent 37 days in NICU @ Rady's Children Hospital and he sister was @ Mary Birch for 14 days. Both hospitals were Amazing especially Rady's, we can't wait to volunteer / donate @ Rady's. It was really hard on my wife knowing her daughters were at 2 separate hospitals luckily the hospitals were connected and within walking distance.

A lot of people said they are not ID because if one baby had the EA /TEF then baby B (AllY) should as well, but the Dr told us the birth defect most likely happened after the egg split. Both babies are doing fine and growing everyday. Tatum is roughly 10lbs and her baby sister is 12.5 lbs.

Thanks
dd

 

Well, there's a couple of things you can do.

One is to get the DNA test, that is the definitive answer to whether they are fraternal or identical.

Second is to post pictures so we can guess while you're waiting on the results.

 

My ID boys look very different. I can't imagine anyone would mistake one for the other (8 months old -- 5 months adjusted). They definitely do have similarities, but they're not identical. I do believe that with identical twins there is quite a spectrum of "identical;" some are more alike than others. There have been many days when I've questioned it, especially because we did IVF and we transferred two embryos. But, we had many, many ultrasounds when mono/di was confirmed and they developed TTTS which can only happen with identicals. I have requested and received copies of the medical reports when they were diagnosed with TTTS and the pathology report after birth (examination of a single placenta) and all say TTTS. Obviously, because we did IVF and transferred two embryos there is room for doubt, but, to date, several medical professionals have confirmed monochorionic/diamniotic. I've decided to just wait and see how they develop over the next few years before we go about any testing.
PS. There is a 4 lb. weight difference right now that contributes to some of the difference in appearance.

 

I have mono/di twins and they look nothing alike! Nathaniel is chunkier, always about 2lbs heavier and has way more hair. William has a different build and a slightly different head shape and is balb. His hair fell out after him being so sick with sepsis. They are now 6 mnths old and are just starting to look more alike.

 

Post some pictures for us of them side by side. Close ups of their fa ces!!

 

I agree - post pictures! Many times ID will look different to the parents, but everyone else thinks they look alike since they don't see them all the time. If you have questions, get the DNA test. It will put your mind at ease! Drs can be wrong (and IIRC there are cases of fraternals having TTTS? I could be wrong on that, but I thought there were cases of it.) Our fraternals seemed like they shared a placenta - and even the placental analysis came back saying there was only 1 placenta. But since one is a brunette and one is a redhead they are obviously fraternal and the drs were all wrong. We were told they were mo/di from 11 weeks on, but they are definitely fraternal. On the flip side, our boys were di/di and very obviously ID.

 

i have mono/di twins who look very different (to us). some people say they look indistinguishable but most say they can tell the difference between them. blood type, eye color, hair color, and teething order is the same, which supports the ID theory.

how early were your twins identified by ultrasound? we asked our perinatologist if we could be seeing two placentas that fused but he said emphatically that they identified one placenta at the 8 week scan and that was too early to be two fused. still, we wonder ourselves sometimes and we occasionally toss around the idea of doing the DNA test.

you could could also ask your Dr's office if they received the pathology report for the placenta. it's not a 100% certain way to know for sure, but sometimes the report will show definitive evidence that it was two fused together.

 

Our boys were mono/di, confirmed by pathologist and also they had twin twin transfusion syndrome which can only happen with mono/di. We think that they look different...different shaped heads, their noses are a little different...but it's hard to say since they had a long time in the NICU with different things pushed up their noses, etc. Everyone else thinks they look the exact same, but I think when you know your babies you see more differences.