For Patients

The International Vanishing Twin Syndrome Foundation (IVTSF) offers two core resources created to help families feel informed, supported, and empowered throughout pregnancy and beyond. These tools are designed to be used together and shared with your care team.

1) Prenatal Patient Question Checklist

A patient-friendly guide that helps you know what to ask and what to expect. It supports conversations with your provider about:

• What type of pregnancy you have (chorionicity), when the loss occurred, and what may have caused it
  
  

• How your pregnancy will be monitored, including ultrasound and prenatal testing (such as cfDNA/NIPT)
  
  

• What this may mean for your body and for your baby, and how care may change over time
  
  

• Follow-up needs, delivery planning, and what comes next

This checklist is meant to reduce uncertainty, give you language for difficult questions, and support respectful, clear communication with your healthcare team during an ongoing pregnancy.

2) Quick Provider Reference Guide

A companion resource for your clinicians that helps ensure your care is informed and consistent. It includes:

• Clear VTS definitions and typical ultrasound patterns with references to current guidelines

• Documentation and memorialization considerations

• Postnatal and neonatal follow-up guidance

• Language and psychosocial support for compassionate care

You can share this guide with your provider to help them better understand VTS and your needs.

Additionally, the IVTSF offers evidence-based guidance on:

• Both prenatal and postpartum diagnosis of VTS

• What is known (and not yet known) about VTS management and care of VTS  

• The memorialization and the respectful disposition of fetal remains.