Identical twins or triplets happen when a single egg is fertilized and then later splits. These newly divided embryos are identical. Children that are identical multiples will look like each other and be the same sex. Fraternal multiples develop from separate eggs that are fertilized by a different sperm.

Do triplets happen naturally?

Naturally, twins occur in about one in 250 pregnancies, triplets in about one in 10,000 pregnancies, and quadruplets in about one in 700,000 pregnancies. The main factor that increases your chances of having a multiple pregnancy is the use of infertility treatment, but there are other factors.

What causes triplet pregnancy?

What are some causes of multiple pregnancy? The use of fertility drugs to induce ovulation often causes more than one egg to be released from the ovaries and can result in twins, triplets, or more. In vitro fertilization (IVF) can lead to a multiple pregnancy if more than one embryo is transferred to the uterus.