Recurrent Pregnancy Loss
Treatment in Tarzana
Recurrent pregnancy loss takes a devastating emotional toll on our patients. Each miscarriage brings with it a profound sense of loss and frustration. While hormonal, uterine, immune system, and chromosomal abnormalities are widely accepted as possible causes of repeat
miscarriages, the latest studies point to a new area of investigation - inherited blood clotting factors.
Thrombophilia
When a patient has a tendency to form blood clots, the condition is called thrombophilia. Thrombophilia can be a life-threatening event if the clots restrict blood flow.
Even though men and women can have clotting disorders, these conditions pose added difficulties for women because of their relationship to reproductive issues. Women with these disorders can develop serious complications during pregnancy leading to miscarriage.
Potential Causes of Thrombophilia
Thrombophilia can be an inherited disorder, but can also be caused by external events such as:
- Surgery
- Obesity
- Pregnancy
- Use of oral contraceptives
- Antiphospholipid syndrome
- Long periods of immobility
Pregnancy, oral contraceptives and post-menopausal hormone replacement therapy are all triggering events for Deep Vein Thrombosis (
DVT) in women with thrombophilia. DVT is a blood clot that develops in a deep vein, usually in the lower leg. Deep vein thrombosis can cause pain in the leg and can potentially lead to complications.
In some individuals, excessive clotting in the blood vessels never occurs until they have problems with placental blood flow in a pregnancy. Under these circumstances, the blood supply in the placenta that is, the primary site of nutrition and gas exchange between the mother and fetus will be interrupted due to clotting and this leads to a decrease in blood flow to the developing fetus. As a result the fetus grows more slowly and is smaller than expected this is called intrauterine growth restriction and in severe cases, this may lead to late pregnancy loss.
Recent research indicates that patients who experience recurrent miscarriage may have one or more of these markers for thrombophilia.
What Steps Should I Take?
Because inherited thrombophilia has been shown to be a major cause of recurrent miscarriage, patients with recurrent fetal loss should be evaluated for clotting disorders, even in the absence of clinical signs. This is especially true if the loss occurred after a heartbeat was detected.
Dr. Torbati recommends that in addition to the usual infertility panel which would include testing for antiphospholipid antibodies, lupus anticoagulant, and anticardiolipin antibodies, patients with recurrent miscarriages should be tested for genetic markers of thrombophilia.
If you are suffering from frequent or recurrent pregnancy loss, then contact Dr. Torbati today @
(818) 344-0300 to find out specifically what steps you should be taking to begin treating the cause.
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