What treatments are available for women who have repeated miscarriages
Repeated or recurrent miscarriage means two or more consecutive and spontaneous pregnancy losses. A woman should not lose her mind over a miscarriage because they are frequent happening to 15-20 percent of all the pregnant women. They usually occur within the first trimester which is up to 13 weeks. A miscarriage or two is not an indicator of future infertility. Nevertheless, it is natural to leave a patient with concerns and questions about the ability to attain a live birth.
Many couples have got unassisted health babies after a loss of two pregnancies. It is nice to be hopeful butstill crucial to determine the possible cause of miscarriages and seek the appropriate treatment to prevent recurrence.
Types of miscarriage
Miscarriages occur due to variouscauses, but they are in these two groups.
Recurrent early miscarriages: these are miscarriages that occur within the first trimester due to chromosomal problems of the embryo or genetic factors. Approximately 50-80 percent of the inevitable losses have anabnormal chromosomal number. Uterine structural issues also play a role in the early miscarriage.
Recurrent late miscarriage: occurs due to uterine abnormalities, incompetent cervix, autoimmune problems or premature labor.
Treatments Available For Women Who Have Repeated Miscarriages
Doctors can use one of these treatment options or a combination to treat the problem of consecutive pregnancy losses.
1. Initiating Lifestyle changes
A healthy lifestyle improves the chances of sustaining a healthy pregnancy to the end. Women who smoke cigarettes or take illicit drugs like cocaine should stop the habit, and it will lower the risk of a miscarriage. Limiting caffeine and alcohol intake might also help. Doctors say that weight with an increased risk of miscarriage thus maintaining a healthy weight can help with favorable pregnancy outcomes. There is no proof that mild depression, anxiety and stress trigger recurrent pregnancy loss but they go along with pregnancy loss. Psychological support and counseling might help a couple to cope with their emotional pain after a miscarriage to create a suitable environment for pregnancy.
2. Blood-thinning medicine
These types of medication can help to lower risk of miscarriage if a woman takes them during pregnancy. Women with clotting (thrombophilia) or autoimmune problems can receive treatment of low-dose aspirin and heparin. These types of medicine are not for self-administering purpose and women should not take them without the guidance of a healthcare provider because they can increase the chances of bleeding symptoms such as stomach ulcers.
3. Correction of other medical problems
Recurrent pregnancy loss might be occurring due to some medical issues. These include high levels of the hormone prolactin, abnormal blood sugars and an under or overactive thyroid gland. Treating underlying medical conditions such as thyroid dysfunction, diabetes or high prolactin will improve the chances to have a healthy full-term pregnancy.
4. Surgery
Surgery fixes some problems in a womb (uterus) that increase chances of pregnancy loss. Fibroids (benign tumors), scar tissue or extra tissue dividing the uterus (septum)are some of the issues that require correction by surgery. Correcting the inside shape of a uterus can also lower a chance to geta miscarriage. A surgeon passes a tool with a camera (hysteroscope) through the birth canal to observe and repair the inside of a womb. This procedure takes just a day while recovery takes a few days.
5. Genetic screening
One parent has a translocation (rearrangement) of the chromosomes in about 5% of the couples who experience repeated miscarriages. Fetuses are likely to have chromosome imbalances if one of the parents has a translocation and chance of miscarriage will be higher. A specialist can study the blood of both parents through a process called karyotype to determine if any has a translocation.
A doctor can recommend genetic counseling is a study of the blood reveals a chromosome problem. A fertility specialist might recommend fertility treatments such as IVF(in vitro fertilization) although many couples with translocations finally conceive and get a full term baby. IVF is a process of mixing sperm and eggs outside the body in a lab. They form an embryo that a doctor returns to the uterus but after the preimplantation genetic screening to confirm if there is chromosomes are in the right order. Genetic testing and IVF allows choosing of embryos without translocations and reduce chances of a miscarriage.
Women who miscarry even twice have a 65% chance of getting a healthy pregnancy the third time. Treatment by a specialist specializing in treatments available for women who have repeated miscarriage improves chances of a full term pregnancy.
