Recurrent miscarriage referral time

[LaForza101]

Hello ladies and apologies if this has been discussed recently. I had a quick glance at the board but I know conversations move on quickly.

How long is it taking to receive a recurrent miscarriage/gynecology appointment? I know this will differ by area but I'm looking for other people's recent experiences.

I've just received the letter saying that I am on a waiting list and to be patient. Today, I read a BBC article on the horrendous waits gynecology patients have been forced to endure over the last two years and I'm wondering what to expect.

Luckily, my GP did the basic blood tests for clotting, thyroid disorders, etc so I've already had some stuff ruled out but it's going to be a hard wait. Any indication of how long a wait would be great

It's great that you have had all the bloods down because to be honest that would probably be all they would do for you at this stage.

The wait can be quite long and when you do finally get your appointment, for me personally, other than the basic bloods you are having done, a lot of the conversation was discussing the plan or advice for future pregnancies.

This you might find useful to manage your expectations as the NHS follow these guidelines (attached below)
And if you read it through they don't really offer a huge amount at this stage other than regular scans in early pregnancy unit and the advice to take aspirin etc which by the third miscarriage most women are already doing. I don't mean to seem negative but I do remember pinning all my hopes on that appointment and the answers I desperately wanted and she wasn't able to give me any other than the stats of pregnancy loss and the biology etc and then 'good luck for the next time - ring us when you are pregnant for an early scan '

https://www.eshre.eu/-/media/sitecore-files/Guidelines/Recurrent-pregnancy-loss/ESHRE-RPL-Guideline271120177FINALv2.pdf?la=en&hash=34DB7D51CF98BFC3DA48FAAA7E7DAED670BA6A83

Thanks @Fredsgirl19. I actually found this really comforting because we have decided to carry on trying as my bloods came back normal. We are going to try baby aspirin this time in case it is an inflammation issue rather than clotting and are ready to be more forceful about scans if/when I get pregnant, but I wondered if the done thing was to wait until the appointment.

There are still a few question marks and that longing for an answer in the back of my mind but if they generally advise cracking on then I'm mentally there already

Yes I would definitely recommend you keep going while you wait. Aspirin and Vit D every day.

It is very positive that your bloods were ok. They RMC will probably suggest a pelvic ultrasound but if you have a good GP then you could ask to be referred by them instead of waiting even longer for it as RMC will prob refer rather than do it then.

I think a human beings we always want and answer. And if you are anything like me you like to google and read a lot on possibly causes like NK cells etc. These are all possible reasons but the NHS won't look in to things like that (although I think there is a clinic in Coventry that does for cheaper than private costs) but if those type of in depth investigations are the route you want to go down next don't wait for NHS RMC as they won't offer you that.

Thyroid is one that your GP should def do though. How many weeks have your losses been?

Pre covid the wait time in my area was minimum 90 days and I imagine it's only gotten worse now

To manage your expectations.....don't rely on the miscarriage clinic giving you the magic answer - and fix. They are pretty outdated and limited as to what they can and will do

They won't test progesterone, they won't test NK cells, won't do karyotyping or sperm dna fragmentation, highly unlikely they'll offer progesterone supplements and you'll be advised that unless you have a confirmed medical issue taking aspirin can do more harm than good

They aren't interested in treating you empirically

So actually what do they do over and above the tests you've already had done?....probably nothing

Sorry to be so blunt but I found my miscarriage clinic very underwhelming and quite frankly useless. This wasn't at a provincial small hospital by the way - this was at a major city hospital

They'll wave you off with a call us when you next get pregnant and we'll scan you at 6 weeks by which time probably too late to make much of a difference to the outcome....

During covid I couldn't even get the scans done!

My losses were a MMC at the 12 week scan (the baby got to 10 weeks) and two early losses/chemicals where I had a positive test and then bled 5ish days later.

I had a few transvaginal scans while treating the MMC so I presume if there was something obvious there it would have been picked up already but I'll go to any scan they provide.

So other than that it's NK cells, progesterone (again maybe okay because I got quite far the first time?) and testing chromosome/sperm DNA deficiencies. And if they don't test them the only other benefit is being on the books for early scans if I get past 6 weeks again.

This is all good to know to keep my expectations low

@LaForza101

I also had MMC at 12 weeks found at the scan and then 4 further miscarriages between 6-8 weeks as well as 2 ruptured ectopics

I did move onto IVF when I lost my tubes but I found the IVF clinic much more open to doing a wider range of testing (for a cost obviously) x

I had a MMC two at 6 and one at 5. I actually ended up having a successful pregnancy after a round of IVF. I didn't have IVF for the miscarriages I had to have it as my husband had to have chemo so we banked sperm however the IVF did teach me that due to PCOS my egg quality is quite poor.

Don't give up hope. It can feel like a long road and sometimes it isn't anything in particular it can just be a series of bad luck.

I would suggest getting your partner on a good vitamin regime. Sperm regenerates every 70 days so three months of vitamins can really help. Some studies suggest that early losses are actually linked to a fault in the sperm and not the egg as the sperm does all the work at the beginning of the process.

It sounds boring but a healthy lifestyle for a man, no cycling , laptops on lap, smoking etc can be enough

Sorry for your losses.

I was referred in July last year and had a telephone consultation in October. This was south coast England area. Unfortunately, it then took until January to get the bloods you have already had done, done and I didn't get a follow-up appointment until March. It will now be late May before I get a scan. So, unfortunately, in my experience, things are quite slow despite a relative quick initial consultation.

Are you able to afford to private at all? We contacted a clinic at the beginning of March, had a lot more blood tests than I've had on the NHS, a pelvic scan and DH had a full analysis, including investigations that the NHS don't do, but which are apparently often informative about miscarriage, and saw the consultant for all the results last week. That package cost less than £1000 so wasn't too bad, although I appreciate may not be accessible for everyone. It certainly speeded up gaining information though.

Good luck with your journey.

Hi all been reading your posts with interest add I've suffered 3 miscarriages one after the other over the last year. Currently pregnant again (5 weeks 3 days) and not holding out much hope. I don't have any nausea or heightened sense of smell and my boobs seem to have lost their fulness. Have been waiting for a referral to the RMC and they finally called today, can't offer me a scan next week as consultant is on holiday so it'll be the week after by which point I'll be nearly 8 weeks, if nothing has happened by then.

So sorry we've all had to experience multiple losses. Hopefully we can support eachother 🙏

I'm sorry @DogTired22 and wish you all the best. It's a crap club to be in but you are right, we are not alone and can support each other.

Thanks to everyone for their responses today. Lots to consider

Joining this thread