Challenges in Recruiting Older Twins for the Sri Lankan Twin Registry

Authors: Sumathipala, Athula¹; Siribaddana, Sisira H.²; Abeysingha, Nihal M.R.³; De Silva, Nimali⁴; Fernando, Devaka J.S.⁵; Dayaratne, D.A.R.K.⁶; De Silva, Deepthi⁷; Warnasuriya, Narada D.⁸; Hotopf, Mathew⁹

Source: Twin Research, Volume 6, Number 1, 1 February 2003 , pp. 67-71(5)

Publisher: Australian Academic Press

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Abstract:

The National Twin Registry of Sri Lanka was established in 1997 as a volunteer register. To extend it to a population-based register, we examined the effectiveness of tracing older twins by inspecting birth records and recruiting them by postal invitation and in-person contact. Birth records at a divisional secretariat reported from 2 maternity hospitals between the years of 1954-1970 were scrutinised to identify a random sample of twins. These hospitals had the highest twin delivery rates for the whole country. We identified 620 twins and a questionnaire was mailed to them. Research assistants visited a cohort of non-respondents (71) in the postal survey. These 620 twins were identified after perusing 20,700 birth records. The twinning rate was estimated at 29.95 ([620/20700] × 1000) twins per 1000 registered births (CI 27.63-32.27). In the postal survey, 37 (12%) responded and 62 letters were returned (20%). Both twins were still alive in 20 pairs, one was still alive in 15 pairs, and both twins were dead in 2 pairs. During field visits , 42 (59.2%) addresses were located. Information was available on 16 twin pairs. Both twins were alive in 8 pairs, one each in 4 pairs, and both were dead in 4 pairs and at least one twin was traced in 10 pairs (14%). Both the postal and the field survey gave a low yield. This finding is different from tracing younger twins born between 1985-1997 by using the same methods. Migration, urbanization and development in the country might have affected tracing older twins from the birth record addresses, which were decades old.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1375/136905203762687924

Affiliations: 1: Section of Epidemiology, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AF, United Kingdom. Email: spjuats@iop.kcl.ac.uk 2: Sri Jayewardenepura General Hospital, Nugegoda, Sri Lanka 3: Epidemiology Unit, Colombo, Sri Lanka 4: National Twin Registry Project, Colombo, Sri Lanka 5: Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Sri Jayewardenepura University, Sri Lanka 6: General Hospital, Badulla, Sri Lanka 7: Department of Physiology, University of Keleniya, Sri Lanka 8: Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Sri Jayewardenepura University, Sri Lanka 9: Department of Psychological Medicine, Guy's King's and St Thomas' School of Medicine and Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College, London

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