From the moment of conception until the end of pregnancy, the fetus develops and grows, this is especially evident in the first and second trimester, when life support systems and organs are formed. If fetal development stops before 7 months, a frozen pregnancy is diagnosed. Only a doctor can accurately determine the pathology, but many mothers are interested in whether they can notice the symptoms on their own. What will a pregnancy test show in such a situation?
What is a “frozen pregnancy”?
Fetal death is a condition in which the fetus stops developing and growing and, as a result, dies. This can happen throughout pregnancy, but in the third trimester we are more likely to talk about developmental pathology, and doctors decide on an emergency delivery.
Most often, pregnancy “freezes” in the first trimester. The most dangerous is the 8th week of pregnancy, when the main organs are formed. It is impossible to predict pathology; it develops for various, unrelated reasons. Among them:
- blood diseases in a pregnant woman;
- infectious diseases of the mother;
- Rhesus conflict;
- use of medications;
- bad habits;
- pathology of the uterus;
- hormonal imbalance;
- sexual diseases, previous abortions;
- hereditary predisposition;
- artificial insemination;
- hard labour.
How is a frozen pregnancy diagnosed?
Only a doctor can diagnose the problem. He collects the patient’s general history and prescribes tests:
- blood test for hCG - during a frozen pregnancy, the level of the hormone decreases noticeably and does not correspond to the set deadline;
- urinalysis - the number of leukocytes, protein and ketone bodies is assessed;
- examination of the patient - the uterus does not increase in case of fetal death;
- Ultrasound is the main diagnostic method; it records the absence of fetal motor activity and heartbeat.
Symptoms of fetal freezing
They help diagnose pathology and symptoms that a woman can notice herself. Among them:
- the appearance of bloody discharge or a change in its color to brown;
- pain in the lower abdomen and lower back;
- increased body temperature;
- a fall basal temperature(measured in the rectum and mouth);
- the mammary glands stop swelling and hurting;
- abrupt cessation of toxicosis for up to 12 weeks (if it was noticeable before);
- lack of activity of the child (for more than later, when the baby’s movements are clearly felt).
What will a pregnancy test show?
Another way to independently diagnose the presence of a problem is a pregnancy test. Its action is based on sensitivity to the hCG hormone. When pregnancy fades, it stops being produced and is gradually eliminated from the body, the test in this case shows negative result. However, such a diagnosis cannot be called accurate; the test results may be erroneous.
In the early stages
On early stages It is more difficult to diagnose that the fetus has frozen, so the expectant mother needs to listen carefully to her body. If alarming symptoms appear, you can use a pregnancy test. If it previously showed 2 stripes, but at the time of analysis they are not there, you should contact a gynecologist. He will conduct additional research and make a diagnosis. An ectopic pregnancy or test error cannot be ruled out.
In the second and third trimester
It is not advisable to carry out the test at a later date. The baby is already big enough, and the fact of pregnancy is beyond doubt. As for pathologies, they become easier to identify. The expectant mother should be alerted to the lack of fetal activity during the day. The above symptoms may also appear (fever, discharge, pain in the lower abdomen).
In such a situation, a woman should urgently contact a gynecologist - he will conduct an examination, take blood for analysis and perform an ultrasound. Suspicions will be confirmed if the fetal heartbeat cannot be heard.
Since the loss of a child is a great psychological trauma for a woman, she may conduct a test in the hope of positive result. The test will indeed show the coveted two stripes, but they will be detected for about a week until the hCG hormone is removed from the body.
What to do if the pregnancy is frozen?
A frozen pregnancy requires removal of the fetus from the uterus, otherwise its decomposition or mummification will begin, and the woman risks her life. The actions of doctors will depend on the stage of pregnancy:
- In the first 2 months, a medical abortion is performed. For this purpose, drugs based on prostaglandin E1 and a progesterone antagonist are used. As a result of their intake, the uterus contracts and a miscarriage occurs.
- Vacuum aspiration can also be used in the early stages. During the procedure, the embryo is “sucked” from the body. The operation is performed under local or general anesthesia.
- If the fetus is already too large, then curettage is used. This method is dangerous because of the thinning of the muscular layer of the uterus, which, in turn, leads to infertility, so curettage is used extremely rarely when other methods are excluded. The surgery is performed under anesthesia.
- At later stages they call artificial birth.
Subsequently, the patient is prescribed drug treatment. The woman takes antispasmodics that promote uterine contraction, antibiotics, and anti-inflammatory drugs. An examination is required to help identify the causes of fetal “fading.”
Consequences of a frozen pregnancy
If a frozen pregnancy is identified in time and appropriate measures are taken, the woman can quickly return to to the usual way life. The consequences in this case are only psychological.
If stillbirth remains in the womb for some time, inflammation may begin, requiring treatment. The fetus remaining in the body can lead to the death of the failed mother.
Modern methods for detecting frozen pregnancy and promptly Taken measures reduce the risk of hazardous consequences to a minimum. The patient will need to undergo an examination, identify the causes of the pathology, and possibly get advice from a geneticist. It is better to plan a new conception.
Frozen pregnancy is a pathology, the causes of which have not yet been fully studied. In medicine, a frozen pregnancy is called a failed abortion. The likelihood of developing the problem does not depend on the woman’s age, her social status or the number of previous pregnancies. The causes of the pathology are still not fully understood. According to statistics, frozen pregnancy occurs in every 176th woman planning to become a mother.
What is pathology?
Non-developing pregnancy is intrauterine death of the fetus associated with irreversible processes occurring in its tissues. The pathology does not have pronounced signs, such as, for example, a miscarriage. For this reason, it is important to know about the first signs of pathology in order to promptly seek help from a doctor.
Important! In gynecology, the concept of an empty fertilized egg is often encountered. The condition occurs when the egg is fertilized and attaches to the endometrium. However, the cell itself does not contain an embryo.
Causes of non-developing pregnancy
The most common reason miscarriage - gene mutations. They are the cause of embryo death in 70% of cases up to 8 weeks. Numerous factors can lead to genetic malfunctions in the body: chronic or hereditary diseases, drug use, alcohol consumption by future parents.
Important! During pregnancy, you should definitely undergo screenings prescribed by a gynecologist and geneticist. This study will detect gene abnormalities in a child in the early stages.
The likelihood of a failed abortion increases if future mom can't refuse bad habits: smoking, poor nutrition, drinking alcohol. Can provoke various abnormalities in the fetus medications, which a pregnant woman takes without the consent of a doctor.
Therefore, in the first trimester, potent drugs are prescribed only in extreme cases, for example, in severe infectious diseases. After 10 weeks of pregnancy, a strong placenta is formed, which protects the fetus from external negative influences. In this case, taking medications will not be so dangerous for him.
Other causes of missed abortion include:
- Rhesus conflict between mother and fetus. The problem is especially acute for women who have had multiple abortions. Gradually, antibodies to the embryo accumulate in the woman’s body, which reduce the likelihood of a successful pregnancy.
- Severe infectious and viral diseases. Expectant mothers are vulnerable to pathogenic flora, so they quickly become infected during epidemics. Some diseases (rubella, chickenpox, measles) can not only provoke the death of the embryo, but also cause physical and mental abnormalities in the child in the future. In such cases, the mother may agree to an abortion or decide to give birth and raise a special baby.
- Hormonal imbalances. The cause of miscarriage can be a lack of prolactin or excess testosterone. If a woman experienced irregular menstruation before conception, her gynecologist must be informed about this.
Risk factors for the development of frozen pregnancy:
- old-time women over 35 years of age;
- numerous abortions in the past;
- the presence of defects in the structure of the uterus;
- previously diagnosed ectopic pregnancies.
If there is at least one risk factor, the woman is put under special control by a gynecologist. The risk group for abnormal pregnancy also includes women who refuse to be observed by specialists.
Important! Every pregnant woman should register with a gynecologist at 7-8 weeks of pregnancy.
Timing of frozen pregnancy
The problem occurs at any stage of pregnancy (even a few days before delivery). Studying statistical data, doctors noted several periods that are the most dangerous for the formation of the fetus:
- 3rd and 4th weeks from the moment of conception;
- 7-11th week;
- 16-18th week.
After the 20th week, cases of child development arrest are few. In the vast majority of cases, the problem occurs before 14 gestational weeks. The cause of the anomaly in the first trimester is genetic abnormalities and hormonal imbalances, in the second and third trimesters - infectious diseases.
Symptoms of pathology in the early stages
A woman may not immediately notice a frozen pregnancy, especially if it does not manifest clinical signs. However, the condition poses a threat to a woman’s life, since the decaying fetus poisons the body and harms the reproductive system. However, upon careful examination of her condition, a woman may note the following signs characteristic of a non-developing pregnancy:
- Abnormal discharge. The woman’s body tries to independently get rid of the fetus after its death. Within 48 hours she may have a whitish discharge of normal consistency. After this, bloody streaks appear in the mucus. Gradually the bleeding becomes more and more profuse.
- Change in the intensity of toxicosis. After implantation of the fertilized egg, many women feel the urge to vomit. They are associated with increased production of hCG. If the fetus dies, the production of the hormone stops. After a day, the woman may feel relief. 4-6 days after the death of the fetus, signs of toxicosis disappear completely. This symptom does not always indicate pathological processes in the body. The intensity of toxicosis may decrease as a result of the woman’s physiological adaptation to the fetus.
- Deterioration in general health. An embryo that decomposes for a long time in a woman’s body provokes intoxication of the body. At first, the condition resembles a cold and is accompanied by fatigue and loss of strength. After two weeks, more pronounced signs of pathology appear: dizziness, anxiety, abdominal cramps, fever.
- Sudden changes in basal temperature. In pregnant women, the indicator is at a level exceeding 37 degrees. After the fetus dies, the mark on the thermometer drops to 36.7 degrees, and at the time of decomposition of the embryo it rises to 37.5 degrees.
Symptoms of pathology in late pregnancy
From the second trimester, other manifestations join the listed symptoms of frozen pregnancy. The clear clinical picture of the problem is due to the fact that the fetus is large.
The main manifestations of a non-developing pregnancy in the second and third trimesters include:
- absence of fetal movements for more than 24 hours;
- nagging pain in the abdomen;
- leakage of water with an unpleasant putrid odor.
The absence of movements in the fetus may also indicate an insufficient supply of oxygen to it. The situation occurs when the umbilical cord is entwined around the baby’s neck or torso. If a woman consults a doctor in a timely manner, the baby can be saved from suffocation.
One of the characteristic signs of fading pregnancy in later stages is a change in breast size. If breastfeeding occurred before the 25th week, then the breasts return to their previous size within a few days. At later stages after the death of the fetus, colostrum may be released from the glands.
After the death of the fetus, not only the breasts, but also the abdomen decreases in size. This is due to the fact that after the tragedy the number of amniotic fluid. The listed signs will be observed in a woman one to two days after the death of the fetus. In the later stages of pregnancy, the body tries to get rid of the dead child already on the 4-5th day.
Diagnosis of frozen pregnancy
Examination for a frozen pregnancy includes the following types of procedures:
- visual examination by a gynecologist;
- blood sampling for hCG;
- basal temperature measurement
The first two methods are considered the main ones in identifying signs of a frozen pregnancy, the rest are auxiliary.
Important! If there is a suspicion of a frozen pregnancy before the 7th week, then the abortion is postponed until another ultrasound examination. It may happen that the device did not detect the vital functions of the embryo or the doctor made a mistake when calculating the timing of conception.
- early term - incorrect location of the fertilized egg or its damage;
- late term - the absence of a heartbeat in the fetus and the discrepancy between its size and the term.
Ultrasound data are not enough to make a final diagnosis of BD. Due to hormonal imbalances and psychological stress in women, fetal development can be delayed for up to four weeks. In this case, a repeat ultrasound is performed after two weeks. If the fetus has not increased in size, this means that it is dead.
Treatment of pathology
A popular way to free the uterine cavity from a dead fetus is medical abortion. In Russia, it is performed up to 9 weeks of pregnancy, in European countries - up to 12. The drugs used for therapy are mifepristone and misoprostol. This method gives an effective result, but has a list of contraindications:
- blood clotting disorder;
- severe anemia;
- renal and liver failure;
- ectopic pregnancy.
If a frozen pregnancy is diagnosed at 13-22 weeks, then artificial induction of labor is resorted to using one of the methods:
- Intramial. A 20% sodium chloride solution is injected into the amniotic sac using a thin needle.
- Isolated. Insertion of mifepristone or misoprostol into the vagina followed by oral administration of one of the drugs.
If the above methods for removing the fetus do not bring results or have contraindications for implementation, then doctors resort to placing a load on the presenting section of the amniotic sac.
In the third trimester, the dead fetus is disposed of through artificial birth. It is prohibited to perform a caesarean section in this case, as blood infection may occur. The woman will have to give birth to the deceased child without anesthesia as an emergency.
After treatment, the woman will need to adhere to the following rules:
- Take hormonal medications to speed up the restoration of the endometrium.
- Take antibiotics to prevent endometrial infection. Drugs from the macrolide or cephalosporin group are prescribed.
- Undergo physiotherapeutic procedures aimed at regenerating damaged uterine tissue.
- Take medications to strengthen your immune system.
Another way to remove the fertilized egg is curettage. For periods up to 12 weeks, vacuum aspiration of the uterus is acceptable. Standard procedure Curettage is carried out only in extreme cases, as it can lead to irreversible damage to the epithelium.
Indications for traditional curettage:
- ineffectiveness of drug therapy;
- cleansing the uterus from fetal remains after an incomplete miscarriage.
Curettage is prescribed to women after an ultrasound, blood test and electrocardiogram. A preliminary consultation with the doctor who will perform the anesthesia is required.
Progress of the curettage procedure:
- The woman is given intravenous anesthesia, which begins to take effect within a few seconds.
- The genitals are treated with antiseptic agents.
- Using a mirror, the doctor fixes the cervix with forceps and expands the cervical canal.
- The cleansing procedure is performed with a curette equipped with a loop at the end. With its help, all the mucous membranes of the cervical canal and uterus are scraped out.
- After curettage, drugs are introduced into the uterine cavity to stimulate contraction. The treated area is disinfected with iodine solution.
After the operation is completed, all fixing gynecological instruments are removed. Cold is placed on the woman’s stomach, which helps to constrict small blood vessels and tone the uterus. A woman's menstrual cycle should resume 6-7 weeks after curettage. The operation is allowed to be performed until the second trimester (less often in later stages).
Consequences of a frozen pregnancy
Termination of pregnancy is stressful for the female body, regardless of the chosen method of treatment subsequently. It will be possible to fully recover after the operation only after 6 months. During this time, the woman will need to take hormonal medications.
Complications after a frozen pregnancy:
- Psychological trauma associated with the fear of unsuccessful subsequent pregnancies or the inability to conceive a child.
- Infertility. To prevent the development of complications, it is necessary to follow the doctor’s recommendations and be regularly examined by a gynecologist. Symptoms for an urgent visit to the gynecologist are fever, severe vaginal bleeding.
- Inflammatory diseases of the uterine cavity. The complication often develops after traditional curettage. During the operation, the mucous membranes of the reproductive organ are removed, which makes it more vulnerable to pathogenic flora.
- Adhesive processes. Inflammation of the uterus leads to the fact that its individual parts stick together. Deformation of the organ cavity subsequently becomes a cause of infertility.
Prevention of undeveloped pregnancy
Each couple planning a child must first undergo a set of studies, which includes a blood test for infections, ultrasound of the pelvic organs, and genetic tests. It is recommended to refrain from conceiving if less than 6 months ago one of the partners had rubella, chickenpox or a severe form of influenza.
Other measures aimed at preventing frozen pregnancy include:
- performing preventive vaccinations;
- visit to a geneticist;
- normalization of hormonal levels;
- conducting healthy image life;
- refraining from flying in the first months from the moment of conception.
With proper planning, the probability of a successful pregnancy is about 90%. This also applies to cases where a woman has had unsuccessful attempts to bear a child in the past. It is important not to ignore visits to multidisciplinary specialists who will draw up a competent treatment plan after a frozen pregnancy.
Fetal development failure occurs for various reasons. Main,
find out about this problem in time to immediately carry out
uterine cavity from the embryo. Let's look at a pregnancy test as a tool
diagnosis of fetal development failure.
Often pregnant girls try to independently diagnose their fading using a pregnancy test. But this is not always an effective method.
It all depends on hCG, to which the test reacts. The fact is that during pregnancy this hormone is actively produced in
body, and when it freezes, it is gradually eliminated from it. Often, with the pathology in question, high levels remain for a long time.
indicators, which does not allow you to find out a 100% true result. Not worth it
forget also that there is a possibility of purchasing a defective test,
which will also not give the correct result.
Fading test results
Positive (two stripes)
If the doctor diagnoses pregnancy fading, and the test shows two
stripes, this usually means the following:
- Misdiagnosis. If the date of conception is incorrectly determined, then
there may be confusion in the indicators when analyzing hCG.
Reference! During pregnancy, the doctor constantly monitors hCG indicator in the blood, and if the level of the hormone decreases sharply, then such
diagnosis. However, it is not always confirmed.
- Too little time has passed since the freeze. The hormone stops
be produced, but its content in the blood and urine is still
remains sufficient for the test to show a second line. IN
On average, hCG is cleared from the body within a week.
Negative
If during pregnancy the test stops showing the second line,
go to the doctor immediately. This means the hormone production stops
and complete or partial removal from the body, that is, freezing
fetal development.
Testing for HIV if the pregnancy is frozen
Every pregnant woman is tested for HIV, and, unfortunately, cases of false positive results are not uncommon. In this situation, the likelihood of obtaining an erroneous result is high. This happens for various reasons:
- human factor;
- chronic diseases;
- possible positive reaction to some processes,
occurring in a woman’s body during pregnancy; - fading of pregnancy.
Will the test show “pregnancy” if the fetus is frozen?
As we have already found out, when freezing the test shows a positive
result only if fetal death occurred 1-2 days before
such a check.
Important! Do not self-diagnose, consult a specialist: your life and health depend on it. If such pathology is detected late, sepsis may develop.
Does the test always show a positive result?
No! Both positive and negative results are possible, and it depends only on the level of hCG in the urine. If it has not yet dropped to the minimum value that the test can react to, then you will see two stripes, but the second may not be clear.
Frozen pregnancy is a terrible diagnosis, which is a consequence of pathological development of the fetus. Why and in what cases this happens – there is no clear answer. In some cases, the genetic factor becomes decisive; in other situations, the course of pregnancy is influenced by stress, physical impact, medication, etc.
Only a doctor guided by ultrasound data can make a diagnosis. Other diagnostic methods may not be effective long after the incident.
What does the test show during a frozen pregnancy?
When the development of the embryo stops at a certain stage, the empty fertilized egg remains in the uterine cavity for some time. Rejection may occur after a week or two, or not at all.
There are many reasons for this condition to occur.
- bad heredity
- venereal diseases suffered in the past
- use of prohibited medications, alcoholic beverages or drugs during pregnancy
- first pregnancy in adulthood
With a properly developing pregnancy, a regular home test should show two lines. This is a sign that fertilization has occurred, the development of the embryo and the body’s production of special hCG hormone, which underlies the operation of the express test. The constant increase in hormone concentration makes home testing more and more reliable every day. But when its production stops, the concentration of hCG in a woman’s biological fluids begins to decrease. This happens gradually, and it can take quite a long time for the element to completely disappear.
Immediately after the development processes are suspended, the test will show a positive result, especially if the pregnancy has already lasted several weeks. If at the time of the incident the period was too short (3-6 weeks), after a day or two only one strip will appear in a special window.
If the fetus stops developing late in pregnancy, it will take a long time for the pregnancy hormone to leave the woman’s body. Only after the hCG level has decreased can a negative test result be obtained. The practice of obstetricians shows that in individual cases, an express test can show two stripes for another month after the death of the embryo, its rejection and gynecological cleansing.
Doctors strongly recommend that women regularly visit the clinic during pregnancy so that a specialist can assess the general condition of the mother and her unborn child, monitor the growth process of the embryo (and then the fetus), conduct the necessary studies, and make recommendations. If any alarming signs occur, you should immediately consult a doctor, because the home test is not an indicator of normal intrauterine development.
