Causes and treatments for recurrent miscarriage.
For some couples, their infertility problems do not start with a failure to conceive, but rather, a failure to maintain a pregnancy after conception. This is called Recurrent Pregnancy Loss (RPL).
Recurrent pregnancy loss is defined as having 3 or more early miscarriages (up to 12 weeks gestation) where the pregnancy was fathered by the same partner, or 2 or more late miscarriages (13-20 weeks gestation).
Usually, early miscarriages are caused by chromosomal abnormalities in the baby, but this isn't the case with recurrent miscarriage.
What causes recurrent miscarriage?
It can be caused by:
- Blood disorders in the mother, including blood clots which cut off the baby's oxygen supply.
- Hormone problems, for instance, a lack of HCG.
- Genetic disorders.
- Recurrent infections.
- Immune system disorder - sometimes the mother's body can produce antibodies to the baby, resulting in miscarriage. This is a type of immunity to pregnancy.
- Stress.
- Abnormal womb shape.
- Weak cervix.
For half of all women who undergo investigations, no cause can be found for their recurrent miscarriages. For these women who are non-specifically infertile, most can achieve a baby after they have de-stressed and detoxed.
What can be done to help?
Dependent on the cause of your problem, there are a number of treatments that can be offered.
If you have a blood clotting disorder you may be given asprin and/or other blood thinning drugs during pregnancy to stop clots from forming and cutting off your baby's oxygen. Many women have had healthy babies after this course of action.
Hormone problems can be countered with hormone therapy, for instance, with a lack of HCG you can be given regular HCG injections.
If you and your partner have a hereditory genetic disorder, in some cases you may be able to have IVF and embryo screening prior to implantation. Embryo screening is when a few cells are removed from the embryo to check for genetic defect. If the embryo is healthy, it is then implanted into the womb.
Aneuploidy screening is for when you have an undefined failure to implant, and it is a process by which the best looking embryos are selected for IVF. This reduces the risk of miscarriage.
In the case of immunity to pregnancy, research into reproductive immunity is being done and in it's early stages - but births have occured as a result of this early research.
For cervical weakness, a stitch can be put into the cervix to prevent it from opening too early.
Abnormal womb shape can be diagnosed by the use of ultrasound scan. If the problem is severe, adoption or surrogacy may be the only options. In milder cases a baby may be achieved by IVF and caesarean delivery.
