Miscarriage is the spontaneous or unplanned expulsion of a fetus from the womb before it is able to survive independently. It can happen due to different reasons like personal lives or the ability of the body to resist any change.

Most miscarriages happen when the unborn baby has fatal genetic problems, which is usually unrelated to the mother.

Miscarriage is mostly occuring for the fetus under Twenty weeks (five months) from the first day of pregnancy. It can also happen for those which are higher than five months but rarely.

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This issue may also caused by some infections like Chlamydia, Genital herpes, Trichomoniasis, Human papillomavirus (HPV) and so on.

Medical conditions in the mother such as diabetes or thyroid disease, hormone problems, immune system responses, physical problems in the mother, uterine abnormalities are causative of miscarriage as well.

Except these reasons which is usually unrelated to the mother, a woman can face miscarriage when she wished to get pregnant by having over than thirty five years old, smoking, has certain diseases such as diabetes or thyroid problems, has had three or more miscarriages.

Sometimes you may face this issue without any of the causes we have mentioned above. This happens because there is a weakness of the cervix, called an incompetent cervix, which cannot hold the pregnancy.

A miscarriage from an incompetent cervix usually occurs in the second trimester and it happens in improvised way.

There are usually few symptoms before a miscarriage caused by cervical insufficiency. A woman may feel sudden pressure, her “water” may break, and tissue from the fetus and placenta may be expelled without much pain.

Photo Internet: the miscarriages in the first 5 months of pregnancy

An incompetent cervix can usually be treated with a “circling” stitch in the cervix in the next pregnancy, usually around twelve weeks. The stitch holds the cervix closed until it is pulled out around the time of delivery. The stitch may also be placed even if there has not been a previous miscarriage if cervical insufficiency is discovered early enough, before a miscarriage does occur.

Except this breakage of tissue as one of the miscarriage symptoms, you can also face bleeding which progresses from light to heavy, severe cramps, abdominal pain, fever, weakness and back pain.

Facing or knowing that miscarriage happened, does not mean that everything got over. Sometimes you can face some bad effects especially when the uterus is not completely emptied, that is why you are always supposed to meet a Doctor when you see some of these symptoms to do some other tests.

If the miscarriage is complete and the uterus is empty, then no further treatment is usually required. Occasionally, the uterus is not completely emptied, so a dilation and curettage (D&C) procedure is performed.

During this procedure, the cervix is dilated and any remaining fetal or placental tissue is gently removed from the uterus. As an alternative to a dilation and curettage, certain medications can be given to cause your body to expel the contents in the uterus. This option may be more ideal in someone who wants to avoid surgery and whose condition is otherwise stable.

When the bleeding stops, usually you will be able to continue with your normal activities. If the cervix is dilated, you may be diagnosed with an incompetent cervix and a procedure to close the cervix (called cerclage) may be performed if the pregnancy is still viable. If your blood type is Rh negative, your doctor may give you a blood product called Rh immune globulin (Rhogam). This prevents you from developing antibodies that could harm your baby as well as any of your future pregnancies.

Blood tests, genetic tests, or medication may be necessary if a woman has more than two miscarriages in a row (called recurrent miscarriage). Some diagnostic procedures used to evaluate the cause of repeated miscarriage include pelvic ultrasound, hysterosalpingogram and hysteroscopy (a test in which the doctor views the inside of the uterus with a thin, telescope-like device inserted through the vagina and cervix).

For those who got miscarriage, are recommend waiting a certain amount of time (atleast from one menstrual cycle to 3 months) before trying to conceive again. To prevent another miscarriage, your health care provider may recommend treatment with progesterone, a hormone needed for implantation and early support of a pregnancy in the uterus.

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According to the March of Dimes, as many as 50% of all pregnancies end in miscarriage, most often before a woman misses a menstrual period or even knows she is pregnant. About 15-25% of recognized pregnancies will end in a miscarriage for different reasons.

More than 80% of miscarriages occur within the first three months of pregnancy. Miscarriages are less likely to occur after 20 weeks gestation due to some drugs, accident or medical conditions in the mother; these are termed late miscarriages.

Eric Uwimbabazi