Spontaneous Abortion

Early spontaneous abortion is often caused by chromosomal abnormalities Overview of Chromosomal Anomalies Chromosomal anomalies cause various disorders. Anomalies that affect autosomes (the 22 paired chromosomes that are alike in males and females) are more common than those that affect sex chromosomes... read more . Maternal reproductive tract abnormalities (eg, bicornuate uterus, fibroids, adhesions) may also cause pregnancy loss through 20 weeks gestation. Isolated spontaneous abortions may result from certain viruses—most notably cytomegalovirus, herpesvirus, parvovirus, and rubella virus. Other causes include immunologic abnormalities and major trauma. Most often, the cause is unknown.

Risk factors for spontaneous abortion include

Subclinical thyroid disorders, a retroverted uterus, and minor trauma have not been shown to cause spontaneous abortions.

Symptoms of spontaneous abortion include crampy pelvic pain, uterine bleeding, and eventually expulsion of tissue. Late spontaneous abortion may begin with a gush of fluid when the membranes rupture. Hemorrhage is rarely massive. A dilated cervix indicates that abortion is inevitable.

If products of conception remain in the uterus after spontaneous abortion, uterine bleeding may occur, sometimes after a delay of hours to days. Infection may also develop, causing fever, pain, and sometimes sepsis (called septic abortion Septic Abortion Septic abortion is serious uterine infection during or shortly before or after a spontaneous or an induced abortion. Septic abortions usually result from use of nonsterile techniques for uterine... read more ).

Pregnancy is diagnosed with a urine or blood beta-hCG test. Ultrasonography is done to confirm intrauterine pregnancy and check for fetal cardiac activity, which is usually detectable after 5.5 to 6 weeks gestation. However, gestational age is often somewhat uncertain, and serial ultrasonography may be required. If cardiac activity is absent and had been detected previously during this pregnancy, fetal death is diagnosed. Alternatively, serial beta-hCG levels that decrease across ≤ 3 measurements are consistent with a failed pregnancy.

Assessment is also done to determine the status of the abortion process as follows:

Missed abortion is suspected if the uterus does not progressively enlarge or if quantitative beta-hCG is low for gestational age or does not double within 48 to 72 hours. Missed abortion is confirmed if ultrasonography shows any of the following:

An anembryonic pregnancy refers to a gestational sac with no yolk sac or embryo, seen on ultrasound, in a nonviable pregnancy.

For recurrent pregnancy loss Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Recurrent pregnancy loss is ≥ 2 to 3 spontaneous abortions. Determining the cause may require extensive evaluation of both parents. Some causes can be treated. Causes of recurrent pregnancy... read more , testing to determine the cause of abortion is necessary.

For threatened abortion, treatment is observation, but health care practitioners may periodically evaluate the woman's symptoms or do ultrasonography. No evidence suggests that bed rest decreases risk of subsequent completed abortion.

For inevitable, incomplete, or missed abortions, treatment is uterine evacuation or waiting for spontaneous passage of the products of conception. For patients managed expectantly, evacuation is done if excessive bleeding or infection occur or if the products of conception do not pass after about 2 to 4 weeks.

At < 12 weeks, evacuation may be done with suction curettage Instrumental evacuation In the United States, about half of pregnancies are unintended. About 40% of unintended pregnancies end in induced abortion; 90% of procedures are done during the 1st trimester. In the United... read more or medical management. For medical evacuation, misoprostol (800 mcg intravaginally) is given; if there is no response to the first dose, one additional dose may be given at least 3 hours after first dose and typically within 7 days (1 Treatment reference Spontaneous abortion is pregnancy loss before 20 weeks gestation. Threatened abortion is vaginal bleeding without cervical dilation before 20 weeks in a confirmed viable intrauterine pregnancy... read more ). A dose of mifepristone (200 mg orally) 24 hours before misoprostol administration should be considered if available.

Evacuation is typically done with dilation and evacuation Instrumental evacuation at 12 to 23 weeks or medication induction Induced Abortion In the United States, about half of pregnancies are unintended. About 40% of unintended pregnancies end in induced abortion; 90% of procedures are done during the 1st trimester. In the United... read more at > 16 to 23 weeks (eg, with misoprostol or mifepristone). For dilation and evacuation, the later the gestational age, the greater the likelihood of placental bleeding, uterine perforation by long bones of the fetus, and difficulty dilating the cervix. These complications are reduced by preoperative use of osmotic cervical dilators (eg, laminaria) or by medical induction.

If complete abortion is suspected, uterine evacuation is not done routinely. Uterine evacuation can be done if bleeding occurs and/or if other signs indicate that products of conception may be retained.

Pain medications should be given, as appropriate. Rho(D) immune globulin Prevention Hemolytic disease of the fetus and neonate is hemolytic anemia in the fetus (or neonate, as erythroblastosis neonatorum) caused by transplacental transmission of maternal antibodies to fetal... read more is given if the mother is Rh-negative.

After a spontaneous abortion, parents may feel grief or guilt. They should be given emotional support and, in most cases of spontaneous abortions, reassured that their actions were not the cause. Formal counseling or support groups may be made available if appropriate.