Miscarriage

Numerous women go through miscarriage, which is painful and tiring physically and mentally, and it also might lead to serious and life-threatening complications for the mother in some cases.

Miscarriage

Miscarriage is the unintentional loss of pregnancy that occurs within the first five months of the pregnancy (before the 20^th week of pregnancy). It’s called spontaneous abortion because it occurs on its own without the mother doing anything.

Spontaneous abortion is common, and about 20% or more of pregnancies end in miscarriage.

Types of miscarriage

• Complete miscarriage: the pregnancy ends completely, and the fetus goes out with the rest of the contents of the uterus.
• Incomplete miscarriage: the pregnancy ends, but the contents of the uterus don’t all go out.
• Missing miscarriage: loss of pregnancy without the knowing of the mother.
• Threatened miscarriage: bleeding and cramping while the cervix is still closed.
• Inevitable miscarriage: bleeding and cramping while the cervix is open.
• Septic miscarriage: a life-threatening condition for the mother that occurs due to an infection in the uterus after the miscarriage.

Causes and risk factors leading to miscarriage

• Most spontaneous abortion conditions occur because the fetus doesn’t develop correctly due to abnormal genes or chromosomes (the structures that carry the genes and are located in the cells).
• Infections.
• Problems in the uterus.
• Hormonal problems.
• Uncontrolled diabetes.
• Thyroid disorders.
• Obesity.
• Malnutrition.

The risk of miscarriage increases in these cases:

• Smoking, drinking alcohol, and using recreational drugs.
• Pregnancy in an advanced age.
• Having certain diseases, such as kidney diseases, congenital heart diseases, and immune diseases.
• Some medications, such as isotretinoin, and therapies, such as radiation.
• Extreme exhaustion.
• Heavy caffeine consumption.

Symptoms of miscarriage

• Bleeding that starts mildly and develops to become heavy.
• Passing blood clots and tissue.
• Cramps and pain in the abdomen and lower back, but not in all cases.
• Rapid heartbeat.

Diagnosis of miscarriage

• Ultrasound.
• Blood tests.
• Pelvic test.
• Tissue test, if any.

Management of miscarriage

• Managing miscarriage depends on its type; in the case of a threatened miscarriage, emergency management are is to avoid miscarriage as much as possible, while if a spontaneous abortion does occur, other managements are done, depending on the case.
• The patient must rest for a period of time after miscarriage.

Prevention of miscarriage

Miscarriage can’t be prevented in most of the cases, but you can reduce its risk by:

• Following a healthy diet and doing unharmful exercising.
• Avoiding the factors that harm the pregnancy.
• Sticking to the doctor’s appointments and the prescribed medications or supplements.
• Managing other health conditions, if any.