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Original poster

Miscarriage after TV Scan

38 replies

Ashleighh95 · 19/12/2023 19:59

Just looking for advice or similar women who may have experienced the same as me. After falling pregnant and everything being absolutely fine for the first 6 weeks me and my husband were eager to have a private scan to check we were actually pregnant.

I then went for a private TV scan and clearly saw everything on the screen, including the flickering of a heartbeat. Told everything was healthy and as it should be at that stage. (I must add after having multiple of these probes in the past for different reasons, they usually are not painful or haven’t been uncomfortable. However, on this occasion the TV scan during my pregnancy was much more painful especially when being moved around for the scan).

Came away with a great report of a healthy first pregnancy and EDD. Up until this point I had no concerns and everything was going well. Unfortunately, exactly 24 hours later I started to bleed. This wasn’t heavy but light spotting, only to then experience it getting heavier and I began to pass clots with bad stomach cramps.

I attended the A&E with suspected miscarriage symptoms and to be advised that it’s unfortunate but they see many women experience a miscarriage after having a TV scan in early pregnancy. To this I was shocked as I wasn’t advised it was unsafe.

Fast forward 12 hours later I had my bloods taken and was advised they wouldn’t scan me to confirm miscarriage and so instead I went home to be comfortable whilst in so much pain, discomfort and of course heartbroken.

To have my miscarriage confirmed I decided to book in for a further private scan (NOT an internal scan but just a normal tummy ultrasound) with a different company.

In my heart of hearts I knew the outcome was sad news, I just felt it but it was confirmed on the tummy scan I’d suffered a miscarriage. The woman performing this scan was experienced in midwifery for 30+ years and to my surprise confirmed that she would never advise on having a TV scan in early pregnancy due to the ultrasound waves being so much stronger and internally the cervix and uterus being sensitive.

I was so surprised at this and she went on to say she also sees many women in early pregnancy suffer a miscarriage after having a TV scan and highly recommends against it.

After this as you can imagine I’m suspicious that my TV scan caused my miscarriage, as well as hearing other similar situations. I understand that a multitude of reasons or factors could have caused my Miscarriage but I’m eager to hear what people think and if anyone has had a similar experience.

OP posts:
Parvule · 19/12/2023 20:04

Multiple reputable sources across the internet will tell you that having a TV scan will not increase your risk of miscarriage including this one: https://www.miscarriageassociation.org.uk/information/worried-about-pregnancy-loss/ultrasound-scans/

Im sorry you have been misinformed. I am telling you this so you don’t blame yourself for what has happened as it is likely it was inevitable, sadly. I’m very sorry.

Ultrasound scans - The Miscarriage Association

Ultrasound scans in pregnancy may be routine or they may be offered because of pain or bleeding or because of problems in a previous pregnancy. There are two ways of doing an ultrasound scan. In early pregnancy, especially before 11 weeks, it is usual...

https://www.miscarriageassociation.org.uk/information/worried-about-pregnancy-loss/ultrasound-scans/

moosey89 · 19/12/2023 20:22

You've been incredibly misinformed! I'm actually shocked that people told you that. Ultrasound is proven as being safe, including TV as that's the only way you see anything at an early stage in pregnancy for a lot of women and they wouldn't do it on the NHS if it wasn't safe!

Cas112 · 19/12/2023 20:26

OP it's really not true

Aria2023 · 19/12/2023 20:30

I'm sorry for your loss. I fear you've been misinformed though. I miscarried my first and second pregnancies (missed miscarriages) and no TV scans involved. In subsequent pregnancies I was referred to the EPU for early scans, all TV. I asked if these early scans were ok and I was reassured by multiple doctors and consultants that they were. Indeed it would seem counter productive and extremely cruel, to subject a woman who had experienced multiple losses to a TV ultrasound if it did increase the risk of miscarriages.

Please do not let this information make you take on any sense of responsibility or blame for your loss. Sadly miscarriages (especially early ones) are fairly common. I have had more miscarriages than successful pregnancies but lots of tests show no reason other than bad luck. This was nothing to do with anything you did and sadly was just an unfortunate coincidence that your loss happened shortly after your scan.

cryinglaughing · 19/12/2023 20:32

If all was okay with your pregnancy, why did you go for a private scan?
I doubt very much it caused your miscarriage, so don't beat yourself up about it.
Save your money and steer clear of the private scan next time.

Ohchristmastree23 · 19/12/2023 20:32

Miscarriages are very common in early pregnancy (1 in 4 I think?). Nearly all women who have a TV scan will be in early pregnancy when miscarriage is likely. So it is inevitable that some of those women who go on to miscarry would have had a TV scan. It's just a coincidence. Doesn't mean the TV scan caused the miscarriage. The miscarriage would have happened anyway.

Treesinmygarden · 19/12/2023 20:35

Oh god that's nonsense - when I was pregnant again after two miscarriages, I had a TV scan weekly, up until maybe 10 weeks I think? That was a highly experienced and well-regarded consultant.

Please, don't blame yourself. It was just going to happen. Miscarriage is sadly so very common. It's a horrible experience, I know x

SparklyMularky · 19/12/2023 20:37

I'm so sorry you're going through this.

If there was a significant risk, they simply wouldn't perform them. It seems very insensitive of this person to say that but in my experience, midwives do not perform ultrasounds. Professional radiologists (?) do.

I had an NHS scan with a probe at around 6 weeks and no issues.

Mama1980 · 19/12/2023 20:42

I'm so sorry for your loss op but you have been misinformed.
TV scans are safe and sometimes necessary, with my second I had one at 5 weeks and then every week until about 12 weeks - medically they were necessary and administered by the NHS. I found that they are generally more painful in pregnancy, due to hormones and the tissues being more sensitive.
Sadly there is nothing you could have done, the timing is just an unfortunate coincidence.

TheYearOfSmallThings · 19/12/2023 20:43

It is so disappointing that a member of clinical staff gave you this misinformation. I would contact PALS and ask them to feed back to the clinical manager for the service. They need to make clear to their staff that miscarriage is not caused by TV ultrasound, so they don't cause distress to patients by suggesting that it is.

ItsMyPartyParty · 19/12/2023 20:49

Miscarriages are sadly very common. So it’s inevitable that a fair number will be after one of these scans. As others have said, there is no evidence that they’re unsafe. You’ve been given bad information there. Miscarriages are mostly unpredictable and it’s not because of anything you did. Hope you’re ok.

jadey1991 · 19/12/2023 21:13

I'm sorry for your loss. However, I wouldn't blame the TV scan for your miscarriage as that's very unlikely. I've had 2 private TV scans with my last 2 pregnancies, both of which I was 6 +5 days.

Miscarriages happen due to potential birth defects/something to do with chromosomes. I've suffered 2 of them, 1 at 10.5 weeks and 2 at 6.5 weeks.

Don't blame yourself, op. Just try to relax as much as you can. Your dream will come true soon x

pretzelbreath · 19/12/2023 21:39

I'm so sorry about your miscarriage OP. You have been incredibly misinformed and I would make a formal complaint about the person who said that. Contact PALS. They clearly have no idea about obstetric sonography and shouldn't be allowed to spread such harmful misinformation. TV scans can be very beneficial and are completely normal and routine during early pregnancy.

CandyLeBonBon · 19/12/2023 21:54

Trans vaginal scans don't cause miscarriages op. At 6 weeks, a pregnancy is still very early and many manypregnancies fail at this stage.

I've had multiple miscarriages and I know it's tempting to try to find something to blame, but TV ultrasounds really are not the cause.

Best of luck.

Whataretheodds · 19/12/2023 22:21

BIG BIG difference between having a TV scan and then having a miscarriage, and having a TV scan which CAUSES a miscarriage.

If TV scans in 1st trimester caused a miscarriage they would be banned, or at the very least not frequently offered fir reassurance to pregnant women who've suffered previous miscarriages.

Whataretheodds · 19/12/2023 22:21

I'm sorry for your loss.

Original poster
Ashleighh95 · 20/12/2023 21:46

Well, first of all I just want to thank you all for your kind messages and responses to my experience. I’ll for sure be taking this in my stride and trying to pick myself and dust myself off.

I’ll for now be focussing on recovery and a much needed relax during the Christmas period. For now I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed for a more positive pregnancy journey in the near future - if I’m lucky enough!

For all of you that have in the past or of recent experienced a miscarriage, I’m sorry and I wish you all well.

Again thank you all for taking your time to respond and be so supportive on this thread.

x

OP posts:
JRTfan · 21/12/2023 08:19

A TV scan won't cause a miscarriage but those going for early scans are more likely to have concerns or issues and therefore are at higher risk of miscarriage..so yes they may see more people miscarry after a TV but thats because they would have anyway.
I had a missed miscarriage,if it wasn't for a scan at 7 weeks I wouldn't have had a clue until I started bleeding at 9 weeks. I'm now pregnant and almost 14 weeks I had 2 early TV scans (IVF so instructed to by clinic) and they have been a great reassurance. Please don't be put off by completely incorrect advice

DrMarshaFieldstone · 21/12/2023 11:39

You've been given incredibly poor information by the hospital staff.

There is no evidence that TV scans cause miscarriage. The staff are seeing a correlation because women who have early TV scans tend to do so because for whatever reason their pregnancy is higher risk.

Original poster
Ashleighh95 · 21/12/2023 15:03

Thank you all.

I do just want to add, the early TV scan wasn’t suggested by the hospital or required due to me having a high risk pregnancy.

The early TV scan I had by choice, privately and not via the NHS which was purely for confirmation of my pregnancy to make sure everything was as it should be at that time.

It was advised to me by the NHS afterwards that it is not recommended to have an early TV scans if it is not needed due to the ultrasound waves via an internal scan.

I have done some research and I have found from third party sites that there is no proof that ultrasounds are or aren’t harmful. I’ve read that there has been scientific evidence that the ultrasound waves volume can damage tissue/growths in the human body.

I think for me this is just a huge lesson learnt and how I will do things differently if I get the choice next time.

thank you for your feedback.

OP posts:
TheYearOfSmallThings · 21/12/2023 15:11

It was advised to me by the NHS afterwards that it is not recommended to have an early TV scans if it is not needed due to the ultrasound waves via an internal scan.

Honestly though, you should highlight that advice to the clinical manager of the service, because it is incorrect and should never have been given to you. The fact that you now look on it as a lesson learned and something you should do differently next time is incredibly sad because you are left wrongly believing that your actions played a part in your miscarriage. The same staff will be giving the same incorrect advice to other women who are experiencing miscarriage, and it is important that this does not continue.

Original poster
Ashleighh95 · 21/12/2023 18:37

Thank you for this. I appreciate your feedback and concern of the advice from the NHS. However, like I said I have done some research ofc which i think is a natural thing to do after being told what I was. This is what I found -

Healthcare providers are sometimes questioned by pregnant women about the safety of ultrasound use. A vague answer is frequently given, such as “ultrasound is non-invasive and has been used for almost 50 years, so therefore it must be safe”. While there is a reasonable amount of truth in this answer, the concept of absolute safety does not exist, and there is a need to increase clinicians’ knowledge on the potential biological effects of ultrasound.

Ultrasound is a form of energy emission, a sound wave alternating positive and negative pressures, so it has the potential to produce biological effects on tissues and cells that cause harm to the fetus. There are two major mechanisms that may potentially affect embryonic and fetal tissues: thermal and mechanical.3 Thermal effects result from the passage of ultrasound waveforms, with transformation of acoustic energy into heat. This constitutes the major potential adverse effect of obstetric ultrasound, with several reports existing of the deleterious effects of heat on embryos/fetuses

If these findings above are in any way true, I’d also want to help prevent other women going through the same unnecessarily.

OP posts:
LoreleiG · 21/12/2023 18:44

Sorry for your loss OP. Many miscarriages occur around the six week mark and the fact that you had a scan is surely just coincidental. Not an expert but surprised you were told otherwise.

Bluelightbaby · 21/12/2023 18:44

Ohchristmastree23 · 19/12/2023 20:32

Miscarriages are very common in early pregnancy (1 in 4 I think?). Nearly all women who have a TV scan will be in early pregnancy when miscarriage is likely. So it is inevitable that some of those women who go on to miscarry would have had a TV scan. It's just a coincidence. Doesn't mean the TV scan caused the miscarriage. The miscarriage would have happened anyway.

Exactly this ! With a large percentage of early pregnancies ending in miscarriage and TV scans only being used on early pregnancy it’s obvious the statistics will be skewed

Torganer · 21/12/2023 18:48

You really need to make a formal complaint about this. What they have said is completely untrue and damaging.