Blighted ovum: What is a anembryonic pregnancy ?
What causes anembryonic pregnancy?
Despite a positive pregnancy test and the first signs that indicate that you are pregnant, it can happen that the egg, well implanted in the uterus, does not contain any embryo.
Although a blighted egg means that there is a miscarriage, it is possible to calmly consider a new pregnancy from the next cycle. The key is to make sure that the uterus is empty to accommodate an embryo.
Definition: What is a blighted ovum or empty gestational sac?
Your pregnancy test was positive, while the first clinical signs of pregnancy : tender breasts, absence of periods , nausea , confirm it. However, your pregnancy will not result in birth . No embryo has formed. This is what is called a blighted ovum , or “non-developing pregnancy” . “ Sometimes, although all the symptoms of pregnancy are present, and despite the implantation of the egg, or gestational sac, in the uterus , it happens that no embryo is detected there”.
How is a blighted ovum diagnosed? What are the signs or symptoms of it?
When the classic signs of pregnancy are present, it is sometimes the first ultrasound between 11 and 13 weeks of gestation, or the dating ultrasound which takes place around the 7th week of amenorrhea, which will reveal the presence of a blighted ovum. " Some women may have light bleeding which will alert them before this key stage. A control ultrasound will allow the gestational sac to be examined . If it is empty, a second ultrasound performed a week later will confirm the diagnosis" .
Not easy news to digest
"It is very difficult to determine the causes of a blighted ovum. And when this happens, feelings of guilt and incomprehension can overwhelm and sadden you. Do not hesitate to seek psychological support to feel better ". Rest assured, this inexplicable pregnancy anomaly is not the consequence of any behavior that you may have had and, above all, it will not prevent you from carrying a future pregnancy to term.
Miscarriage: Is it rare to have a blighted ovum?
"You should know that the first trimester of a pregnancy is crucial. It is a delicate period during which 1 in 4 pregnancies fail . In any case, you should know that pregnancies terminated due to a blighted ovum had a good reason to end . For genetic, chromosomal or toxic causes, for example, but we do not know the exact origin". In any case, there is no inevitability". Blighted ovum belongs to the major chapter of fetal losses in the first trimester, which includes miscarriages or terminated pregnancies . And it is not because it happens to you once that the phenomenon will happen again".
Good to know: it is only after 3 miscarriages in a row with the same partner that you will be offered an assessment .
Termination of pregnancy and expulsion of a blighted ovum: what are the treatments?
Once the diagnosis has been made and the presence of a blighted ovum has been confirmed, three possibilities are available to you :
The first solution is to wait and see . There is no risk of infection in letting nature do its work by expelling the blighted egg. After 7 to 10 days, if nothing has happened, we will intervene.
Taking medication . The miscarriage is then induced in two phases. 3 anti-progesterone tablets are administered to the patient in the clinic or hospital. The second phase takes place 48 hours later, in day hospitalization. Two tablets, given at regular intervals, will cause contractions and bleeding , until the egg is expelled. This method has a success rate of at least 85%. Within 10 to 15 days after taking medication, a mandatory ultrasound will be performed to check for uterine vacuity.
Aspiration , formerly called curettage . This outpatient surgical procedure is performed under general anesthesia to remove the egg or its residue when bleeding persists.
Getting pregnant: how long to wait for a new pregnancy?
Do you really have to wait 3 months before trying to get pregnant again? "Once you've made sure that the uterus is empty, you don't necessarily have to wait 3 months. If the body is ready, the pregnancy will implant".
