Identical Twins

Identical Twins

Identical Twins

Sometimes a fertilized egg splits within a few days of conception to produce genetically identical twins. Because these twins come from one zygote, they are also known as monozygotic. Identical twins are of the same sex. Identical twins can be of three types: About one-third of identical twins split soon after fertilisation and form completely separate twins. Like fraternal twins, these twins have separate placentas. The other two-thirds split after they attach to the wall of the womb. As a result, they share a placenta. The technical name for these is monochorionic. In a very small number of identical twins, splitting might happen even later. In this case, both twins share an inner sac, called the amnion, in addition to sharing a placenta. The technical name for this is monoamniotictwins. They’re often called MoMo twins.