MMC at 11 weeks after 3 scans with heartbeat

[elzober]

Sat in A&E and numb. Supposed to be 12 weeks tomorrow but started getting a bit of light brown spotting a couple of days ago. Wasn't too concerned as I had early scans at 6, 8 and 9w5days and all looked ok but I got swabbed at GP this morning to check for infections and decided to book another private scan at lunchtime just to check.

It was the same place where I'd had previous private scans with no issues so I knew the usual routine. This time they didnt put it on the big screen, the sonographer looked concerned and told me I needed to go to the hospital for an internal. I kept asking for specifics but they wouldn't tell me anything at all. They just wrote a report and put it in a sealed envelope for the doctor.

In A&E the doctor finally told me what was in the envelope...no movement, no heartbeat and only measuring 10 weeks not 12. A missed miscarriage, just like I'd read about. I'm just waiting for NHS to confirm with their equipment...

This is my second loss after an ectopic last year (thankfully no surgery needed). I tried to do everything right this time but it wasn't meant to be.

I won't give up and we'll get through this but it's hard to swallow after 3 scans with a heartbeat. I really thought we were on safe track. I read that chances of a loss after a heartbeat at 8 weeks were relatively small.

I’m so sorry for your loss

I’m so very sorry for your loss.

I'm so very sorry OP. I had a MMC in December. It's such a gut punch; so unfair. I can imagine the previous scans and given you a lot of reassurance; life can be so cruel.

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm back home now and will go back on Monday to discuss management options.

I keep searching for reasons and the moment when it must have happened - it measured 10w 6days and it looked healthy in all previous scans. I just can't get my head around it and I hate that I won't get any answers.

We'll try again eventually but it feels like Russian Roulette - am I going to end up here again?

I've been there @elzober - MMC with fetal death at 10+5 after a great scan at 10 weeks. No explanation at all, even though they did run some tests. I'm so sorry x

I'm sorry for your loss @TheDaydreamBelievers it's so sad that we can't get any kind of explanation for these events.

@elzober My healthboard did do some investigation - checked thyroid, iron levels, folate levels, vitamin D, and importantly blood clotting factors but all clear. Unfortunately this was as part of a research study into end of trimester 1 losses with a specialist midwife, so I don't think it's routinely offered after one loss.

Sorry this has happened to you. Your story is very similar to mine - I had 2 scans at about 7 weeks and nearly 10 weeks where everything looked perfect, then found out at the 12 week scan that the baby had died at about 11 weeks. This only happened last month so I don't have any explanation yet. I think you're likely to be offered tests because the loss was a bit later in the first trimester and came with no warning - this was "only" my 2nd consecutive miscarriage and I was offered all the tests without asking. It's definitely something to push for if you're not offered them anyway. Oh and one advantage of surgical management is that they can test the foetus too. Hope you're coping ok, it's so so hard.

@Vick99 thanks for your post, did your tests find anything? I asked about testing but they told me they'll only test me after 3 losses and they don't usually test foetus before 12 weeks. Maybe its a postcode lottery. I feel frustrated as I want to know if this is just bad luck and not preventable or if something is wrong.

I'm so sorry for your loss. I had a MMC - found at my 12 week scan - in Jan following a fine scan at 7 weeks. I wasn't offered any tests and was told that nothing was usually offered below 16 weeks.

It's heartbreaking. I'm so sorry.

@seasaltandsunscreen I'm so sorry. I hate the fact we can't get answers. I would feel better having some more information but I don't think I'll get it.

I’m so sorry for your loss. I understand your need for answers, and it doesn’t sound like it has been handled well. I can’t tell you you won’t end up back where you are now - I wish I could. But I will say that most people I know who have been where you are (including me) have also been lucky enough to have full term live baby pregnancies mixed in. It doesn’t help with the lottery feeling.

with the comments about tests that are available- even when tests are done as they have been for me, they often give no answers, no useful information. Having had blood tests, scans and subjected my babies’ remains to post mortems, I still got nothing more substantial than - it’s one of those things, it will probably be fine next time. It’s actually quite painful to know that my babies were healthy with nothing wrong with them, no chromosomal or structural abnormalities, no conditions incompatible with life. I just couldn’t hold onto them, and I will never know why. They said it would probably be fine next time. It was.

from here, know that you will never feel reassured by a scan again and I’m sorry for that, and that saying it will probably be fine next time is a shit platitude which doesn’t help in the slightest - it is also true.

@Vick99 @elzober I had surgical management but they don't offer genetics testing if the fetus lived until less than 12 weeks. The extra testing I got was as part of a research study for fetuses dying after 10 weeks. Any fetal death earlier than that and it's no testing until 3 losses (which I think is appalling)

@HorribleHerstory I'm so pleased to hear yiu had positive outcome after loss. I just pray that I can get lucky third time. Part of me is optimistic that I did at least get to 11 weeks and I seem to get pregnant quickly. Up until this happened I had no bleeding or complications and that gave me some confidence in my body. My ectopic didn't even make 6 weeks so that was disconcerting and I was terrified I'd need surgery on my tube but this time at least it was in the right place and it grew.

Hi @elzober , I've only had the blood tests back and they were fine, as I thought they would be. I'm not expecting any of the tests to find anything, but I don't believe a previously healthy foetus dies at 10, 11, 12 weeks for no reason...just that the reason is very hard to find! In my case I think a hormonal problem/endometriosis (undiagnosed but I've had symptoms for years) might well be to blame. Sorry they haven't offered you tests - as you say it might be a postcode lottery, or possibly I've been offered them based on my complicated pregnancy history (I have 2 children) or based on the fact this was my 3rd miscarriage overall.

@HorribleHerstory Would you mind me asking what stage your losses were? (don't answer if you prefer not to!) It's great to hear you went on to have a healthy pregnancy. I totally agree that a scan would never be reassuring again...and nor would hitting the supposedly safe 12 week mark.

I'm really sorry for your loss , I remember when it happened to me I just felt so empty and lost. Got home wrapped myself up in the quilt and just cried and cried. It does get easier x

Hi @Vick99 I lost a little one at 12+4 (ironically the day after a positive 12 week scan), the others I think of as my bigger ones at 17 weeks and nearly 19 weeks. Not in that order, my 19 week loss was my first pregnancy actually. As you can see I understand the meaning of it feeling like a lottery. I have also carried babies to term (and beyond). I did nothing differently for any of them.

@HorribleHerstory Oh what a very hard time you had, with so many later losses. You must be an incredibly strong person to have kept on trying.

Sorry for your loss , I had similar problem .

I had 2 scan that they told me everything is fine with you and your baby at 6 weeks and 8 weeks , but in 12 weeks scan they realised baby's heart stopped at 9 weeks.

I knew that I had hormonal problems, so I asked GP to check me for pco and thyroid.
I also want to go a private blood test for thyroid before TTC again .

I thinks misscarrage is common in first trimester but it's not common after you see baby's heart is beating. That's why I'm very curious about finding the reason of MMC.

So sorry for your losses. I have just had my second miscarriage (one pregnancy ended during week 8 and one during week 5 but didn't miscarry until later each time) and I have been recommended to have my thyroid and iron levels tested. I have been advised if I get pregnant again to get a scan at 6/7 weeks and to start progesterone if any spotting or bleeding visible on scan. Hope that helps a bit x

Hi everyone I just wanted to update seven months later...

In June I went to a private gynaecologist to have early loss tests. Everything was fine and normal except for a gene mutation called MTHFR that means you process b vitamins (folic acid) less efficiently so you need to take methylfolate instead of folic acid. This doesn't necessarily cause miscarriage and dr wasnt concerned but its good to know so you take right vitamins.

Gynaecologist prescribed me 800mcg of methylfolate per day from then on, plus baby aspirin and progesterone in a subsequent pregnancy.

I then did three months of acupuncture and fertility reflexology and got pregnant again in September. I'm 17 weeks now and all is well so far s o hoping for positive outcome 🙏

Ah I didn't realise it was an old thread. Thank you for the update @elzober so pleased that your pregnancy is going well and useful to hear about the medication. All the best.