Early Pregnancy Failure

One of the most common causes of losing a baby early in a pregnancy - early miscarriage - is blighted ovum or anembryonic gestation.

Basically this is said to have happened when a fertilised egg implants as it should in the uterus, but for some reason stops developing further.

Some women are unaware this is happening and presume their pregnancy is developing as normal, and a scan around the 12 week mark will often, sadly, be the time they discover the truth.

Most women who suffer an early pregnancy failure of this type will have a positive pregnancy test result in the first few weeks of conception as the usual pregnancy hormones will be secreted. She may also experience many of the early pregnancy symptoms - sore breasts, increased urination, tiredness, even nausea.

However when the embryo fails to develop these pregnancy hormones subside and she may experience some spotting or bleeding - but not always of a quantity to be noticeable. Some woman may have cramps.

Others just "know" there is something not quite right. Maybe they simply don't "feel" pregnant any more. Maybe they can tell they have not grown at all for several weeks. If a woman suspects there is something not right with her pregnancy she should see her GP and arrange an early scan. This will confirm if there is indeed an empty gestational sac.

Most women will then naturally miscarry, that is they will expel the gestational sac and accumulated tissue, usually by the end of the first trimester (sometimes earlier).

But if a woman is too upset, or too uncomfortable to wait for this to occur naturally, a GP can prescribe medication to speed up the elimination process or they may recommend a dilation and curettage (D&C) procedure to remove remaining tissues.

It is generally considered safe for the woman to get pregnant again straight away, although most women prefer to have one natural menstrual period before trying to conceive (which usually happens four to six weeks after the miscarriage). A barrier method of contraception such as a condom should be used if the woman wants to delay pregnancy.

Some studies have shown that it is better to get pregnant again sooner rather than later. Statistically women who get pregnant within six months of having a miscarriage increase their odds of having a healthy pregnancy and have fewer miscarriages or ectopic pregnancies than women who wait six to 12 months after miscarriage.

But the woman must do what feels right for her. Losing a baby at any stage is heartbreaking and only she will know when she is physically - and mentally - ready to go through the emotions of pregnancy again.

Debra Aspinall is an experienced journalist and the editor on Women Health topics, but he is a specialist in Pregnancy information write-ups. Debra writes on various matters such as pregnancy test, early pregnancy symptoms, early symptoms of pregnancy and etc. He has been appreciated for his quality work by many reputed health magazines.