It's a shame and pain .... Until recently, the test showed two stripes, you were preparing to become the best mother in the world and here he is a cruel diagnosis: pregnancy does not develop, you can not see the heartbeat on ultrasound, you need to go for cleaning. Approximately 15% of women of different ages face the pathology of fetal death. Why is this happening and is it possible to prevent a dead pregnancy?
Frozen pregnancy: what is it
Sometimes the pregnancy ends due to the fetus freezing in the womb. This can happen at different times, most often in the first trimester, after 12 weeks this happens extremely rarely.
Important! Many women are not even aware of the many missed pregnancies and self-abortions that followed, since the largest percentage of these occur in the first days of pregnancy. According to experts, approximately half of pregnancies end this way.
And in the period when a woman finds out about her interesting situation, the probability of fading is less than 20%. The most dangerous period is the eighth week, since at this time the main organs of the future baby are formed.
It is precisely because of the risk of fetal egg freezing during the first 12 weeks that makes them the most critical. It’s hard for a woman to understand that her baby’s heart is no longer beating, often this happens 2-3 weeks after death. The fetal egg itself during this time stops its development and is rejected by the uterine mucosa. Subsequently, it can independently leave the body of a woman, but can continue to remain in it.
Causes of Frozen Pregnancy
Until today, gynecologists cannot in all cases accurately determine the causes of fetal death. In the first weeks, severe malformations that are not compatible with life lead to death. The mortality rate for this reason is 70%.
Embryo freezing for a period of more than 14 weeks occurs due to the transfer of a pregnant infectious disease, in rare cases, death is caused by a blow or a fall.
In some women, it happens that several pregnancies end in a sinking embryo for no reason. In any case, do not be discouraged, often after two or three frozen pregnancies, a woman without problems carries and gives birth to a healthy baby.
Other causes of embryo freezing may include:
• drinking alcohol by the mother in the first weeks of pregnancy;
• father's smoking during pregnancy planning;
• hormonal disruptions;
• Rhesus factor in the mother with a positive in the fetus;
• severe physical exertion in the early stages of pregnancy;
• constant stressful situations.
How to determine a frozen pregnancy
There are a number of symptoms that should alert a woman. The body itself will tell her about a frozen pregnancy, but a woman should pay special attention to the following symptoms.
1. The disappearance of toxicosis. Women with toxicosis will definitely notice these changes. After constant nausea in the morning, as well as from pungent smells, suddenly everything changed, although it was still far from the second trimester.
2. Softening breasts. After soreness and bursting in the first trimester, the mammary glands sharply became soft, ceased to hurt. Almost all women who have had a miscarriage notice this manifestation. After the death of the embryo, the breast changes after 3-6 days. But there are other reasons for softening breasts, so do not immediately panic.
3. Changes in basal temperature readings. After ovulation, an increase in basal temperature is observed, on average, it is 37 degrees. After conception, the temperature does not drop, but when the fetus freezes, it decreases on average by a degree. A sharp jump in basal temperature occurs when the embryo begins to decompose. This is due to the fact that the body stops producing hormones necessary for the development of the embryo. Although measuring instruments can fail, in addition, not every woman maintains a schedule for measuring basal temperature.
4. Bloody issues. If the fetus is frozen, the fetal egg continues to remain in the body, discharge will occur in the early stages, as its gradual rejection occurs. It is such discharge that is the surest sign of a frozen pregnancy in the early stages. The color of the discharge itself varies depending on the age of death of the embryo:
• after the first 2 days after death - a white hue;
• From 3 to 6 days, the fetus exfoliates from the walls of the uterus, and subsequently blood streaks appear in the discharge.
• A woman may notice brownish-reddish discharge when 12-14 days pass through after the death of the embryo.
After the appearance of red discharge, a woman will suspect something is amiss. But nothing can be fixed here. And yet, not any discharge indicates the death of the embryo. Sometimes they signal a pathology in the body of a woman. In this case, timely contact with a specialist will probably save the fetus from death.
5. Headaches, weakness. These sensations are similar to toxicosis, but they are caused by the fact that the decay products of the embryo enter the bloodstream.
Correct Symptoms Confirming Fetal Fading: Diagnosis
Nevertheless, it is impossible to independently detect the fading of the fetus. After the patient’s treatment, the doctor conducts an examination, comparing the size of the woman’s uterus with those that should be at this stage of fetal development. After undergoing an ultrasound and passing tests for hCG, he will be able to accurately confirm or deny the fact of fetal freezing.
HCG changes are the surest sign of a missed pregnancy
An increase in human chorionic gonadotropin is a sign of conception, and its decrease indicates its end. Each stage of gestation must correspond to a certain level of hormone. When the embryo fades, its level decreases significantly.
Ultrasound scan
When the fetus freezes, an ultrasound scan will show the following results:
1. Lack of heartbeat;
2. The size of the fetal egg and embryo are not normal;
3. If 4 weeks have passed since the death of the embryo, deformation of the fetal egg is observed.
Is it possible to reduce the risk of embryo death
No one is safe from a frozen pregnancy. It can be caused by many factors. And to reduce the likelihood of such, even before conception, it is necessary to undergo a screening examination by a gynecologist, and in the early stages of pregnancy, an examination for urogenital infection is important. With endocrine disorders in the body of a pregnant doctor, the doctor will select the appropriate hormonal therapy. Genetic counseling will help identify high-risk groups and take action in time.
It is also important to identify autoimmune disorders in a timely manner and correct them. If, in a timely manner after the loss of pregnancy, the causes of fetal death are identified and eliminated, repeated pregnancy will not end in tragedy.
What is the danger of a dead pregnancy
The danger to the mother after the fetus freezes is that often it remains in the body of a woman. If the latter does not notice any changes in the body, the fetus decomposes for a long time, which can lead to blood poisoning, since inflammatory processes occur, decay products poison the body, which is why a woman begins repeated toxicosis. Therefore, the trip to the doctor for any suspicion should not be postponed.
Experienced doctors always say to women after a frozen pregnancy: do not worry, then something was wrong with this baby, God took you from even greater grief!
