Ectopic pregnancy can kill

Posted on December 19th, 2008 in Health, Wellbeing

Before yesterday, I’ve never really learned what ectopic pregnancy is. I’ve only recently heard of this term when I was reading up on pregnancy related articles. It was only when a dear friend wrote to break the shocking news that she suffered from it that I took more notice and read more about it.

Ectopic pregnancy, also known as tubal pregnancy, is a condition where the embryo implants itself outside of the uterus or the womb. The failure to implant itself inside the womb will result in the embryo settling down in several possible places in the body, most commonly being the fallopian tube, or the ovary, abdomen and even the cervix.

When the embryo grows quickly in the confines of the fallopian tube, it pushes against the tube and when it’s too big for the tube, it can cause the fallopian tube to burst, thereby causing profuse bleeding and severe pain in the abdomen. When a woman loses too much blood too quickly this way, it can lead to death. She should be immediately sent to the emergency room for treatment.

At this juncture, the usual treatment would be surgery to stop the bleeding and it is recommended that the fallopian tube be removed. Unfortunately, the baby will not survive. In cases where the discovery of ectopic pregnancy is at an early stage, it can be treated with an injection to stop the growth of the embryo before it causes the mother bodily damage.

What causes a woman to suffer from ectopic pregnancy? Here’s what I found from Women’s Health:

Usually, some sort of anatomical problem exists which traps the fertilized egg in the tube. Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID), which leads to scarring of the tubes, is the most common cause, comprising about 30%-50% of all ectopics. Pelvic infections include chlamydia and gonorrhea.

There are a number of other factors that will put a woman at risk for an ectopic. These factors include:

a) Congenital anatomical abnormalities
b) Tumors or cysts in the tubes
c) Fibroids in the uterus, which block the tube’s entrance into the uterus
d) Endometriosis
e) Scar tissue from outside the tube, which causes constriction on the tube. This may be caused by other problems or surgery in the abdomen or pelvis, such as appendicitis
f) Previous tubal surgery: previous ectopic, tubal ligation, tubal rejoining
g) Delayed passage of the conceptus to the uterus. The conceptus may be fertilized in one tube but cause an ectopic in the opposite tube because it reaches that tube via passage through the abdominal cavity or through the uterus and back across into the other tube. Because of the increased amount of time required to travel these lengths, the conceptus becomes too big to complete its roundabout trip to the uterus.
h) Current use of progestin-only oral contraceptives
I) Infertility treatment

While there is a higher percentage of ectopic pregnancy in IUD users, the IUD does not cause ectopic pregnancies. Rather, it functions to prevent uterine pregnancies, so the only ones that can result are ectopic. The same sort of relationship exists between the use of emergency contraceptives and ectopic pregnancy. This type of contraception prevents implantation of the fertilized egg in the uterus; therefore, only ectopic pregnancies can result. Three weeks after a woman takes an emergency contraceptive, she should see her doctor for a follow-up so that, if she does develop an ectopic, it can be caught early.

Ladies, read and re-read the last paragraph above. If you are prone to taking emergency contraceptives, beware. It’s best that you do not put yourself at risk.

Can a woman who has suffered an ectopic pregnancy get pregnant successfully again? The answer is yes. Here are some statistics to show the fertility rate of women after an ectopic pregnancy. Source: Women’s Health.

a) Chance of subsequent pregnancy: 50%
b) Chance of another ectopic: 15%
c) Chance of spontaneous abortion during next pregnancy: 15-20%

There are some factors that will decrease a woman’s chance of getting pregnant again following an ectopic pregnancy, including:

a) Over age 35
b) Previous problems with fertility

Unfortunately, there really are no known ways to prevent ectopic pregnancies. It happens to 1 in 200 women. I suppose if you do not have any of the above mentioned conditions that are factors that can cause such a pregnancy, your chances of an ectopic pregnancy is pretty low.

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