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Pregnancy after IVF

Pregnancy after IVF

What is ectopic pregnancy?
  • a pregnancy which starts developing outside the uterus instead inside
    • most often in the Fallopian tube
    • on the ovary
    • within the abdomen
    • on the cervix
  • occurs in 1% of all pregnancies
  • the fetus is unable to survive
Why is ectopic pregnancy dangerous?
  • because it can lead to life-threatening bleeding if it is not spotted in time
Who is under increased risk of an ectopic pregnancy?
  • women who have had:
    • pelvic inflammatory disease – ovary or tube inflammation
    • surgery close to the tube
    • prior ectopic pregnancy (the risk of reoccurrence is 10%)
    • endometriosis
    • a miscarriage
    • intrauterine device
How is ectopic pregnancy discovered?
  • pregnancy test turns out positive and an ultrasound does not reveal the fetus in the uterus
  • irregular pregnancy hormone (beta HCG) levels in blood tests
What are the symptoms of ectopic pregnancy?
  • pain – not always present in early stages of pregnancy
  • bleeding – not always present in early stages of pregnancy
  • pregnancy symptoms
  • in ectopic pregnancy burst severe pain and loss of consciousness occur as a result of sudden loss of blood
How is ectopic pregnancy been treated?
  • if the beta HCG levels drop in two tests that are two days apart, we can only wait for spontaneous miscarriage, monitoring the condition of the patient along the way
  • early treatment of an ectopic pregnancy is possible with methotrexate injections
  • late treatment of an ectopic pregnancy, or of a pregnancy with high levels of beta HCG, are done surgically, usually doing a laparoscopy
    • salpingostomy – remove only the pregnancy leaving the tube intact
    • salpingectomy – removing both the tube and the pregnancy.