MMC at 10 weeks and ERPC tomorrow

[KellyBird1980]

Hi All, this is my first time posting here as we recently had a MMC and the ERPC surgery is scheduled for tomorrow.

Does anybody know if a final scan will be offered before the operation? It's been a week since my last scan and I just wanted to make sure nothing had changed in that time (probably just me holding on to false hope if I'm honest). I'm having the procedure through the NHS (who have all been great so far) and I wasn't sure if this is something they do?

We went for a private scan (because we were too impatient to wait for the NHS dating scan) and while my dates were recorded as 10 weeks, the baby only measured 6+4 with no heartbeat . We immediately went to A&E and was advised by the loveliest Dr to have a blood test to measure the HCG levels in my system (unfortunately this isn't available on the NHS so we went private again to get results quickly).

The results came back at 137,000 which ties up with being around 7 weeks pregnant which gave us some hope that maybe we just weren't as far along as we initially thought.

We had our appointment at the Early Pregnancy Unit 2 days after the first scan and bloods were taken and the sonographer who did the internal said she agreed with the first set of results and that we have had a MMC - devastating.

Because only 2 days had passed between scans, I'm worried that not enough time was given to allow for change, so was hoping they would offer a final scan before the surgery tomorrow just in case? xx

I had a mmc last year I had 2 weeks between scans to see if there was any changes then my surgery was booked in the day after 2nd scan

I'm so sorry for your loss Kelly I had a mmc in January of this year and had an ERPC, I was scanned a week after my 12wk appt where the mmc was discovered and then my ERPC was booked in for the following week. As far as I am aware it's procedure to have another scan at least a week apart to check, they should do this for you tomorrow but insist on it if it's not offered. I felt the same as you that I just needed to know for sure x

I had similar dates to you Kelly.

Scan at nearly 10 weeks, no heartbeat and only measuring 6+4. I was certain of my dates though, BFP at 4 weeks, there was no way I was 3 weeks out. There should have been a heartbeat. They didn't offer us another scan, just booked me for the erpc. I started bleeding before but still needed the operation. If you think your dates could be out, press for another scan.

There is lots of support over on the miscarriage/pregnancy loss board if you need it

RiverRocks: I think in our hearts we know the dates don't add up either and that we should definitely be further along than 6 weeks, but we keep trying to make them work for us because the alternative is so sad .

At the moment I'm nervous and anxious about the procedure tomorrow but hopefully it will all go well and it will be a point of closure and new beginnings for us.

Thanks everyone for your kind words and sharing experiences - it's so comforting to know that people have been through the same thing - before this happened we had no idea sadly how common our situation is. xxx

Thanks SCat, that's really helpful, I'm definitely going to discuss it with the surgeon tomorrow - I wish I had paid more attention to the Sonographer when she was explaining things to me at the last scan - my head was spinning and I couldn't take in anything she was saying.

I think I'm finding it hard as well because we had to wait 5 days for the op and in the meantime I haven't had any symptoms of a mc.

Will update tomorrow xxx

Support at home has been great although my husband and I have pretty much just felt like hibernating together for the last week.

This was our first pregnancy so we will definitely try again as soon as we can - anxiety will be through the roof but we can't give up at the first hurdle xxx

Was thinking of you today Kelly hope you're okay, I second what sunbathing said, there are some great supportive threads on here x

Hi All,

Thanks for your lovely thoughts . Everything went well with the procedure and I am home now resting up. The nursing staff and Dr were all great and made things as easy as possible. I was shocked to see that there were 3 other ladies booked in to have the same operation at the same time as me and almost all of the nurses I spoke to had experienced a miscarriage at some point - until this happened to us I had no idea how common it was.

In terms of the op itself everything went smoothly - the last thing I remember was counting to 10 and waking up in recovery. I had a few initial cramps and some light bleeding while still at the hospital but 2 days later both have completely stopped and I have no physical side effects. Emotionally I also feel much better and a sense of closure so that my husband and I can begin to move forward and start trying again after my first period finally arrives.

While I was in the hospital I also had the chance to go through my last scan report with the Dr which made me feel so much more comfortable about having the procedure. As well as the size and no heartbeat, the sonographer had also noted that the gestational sac had started to break down which was a sure sign that the pregnancy had not been viable for some time. Having this explained to me definitely helped with any feelings of uncertainty (or wishful thinking) that there might have been a mistake or mix up of timelines along the way.

xxx

Take care of yourself.