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Dont know what to expect!
Dont know what to expect!
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- Posts: 3155
- Joined: Thu May 31, 2012 10:58 pm
Re: Dont know what to expect!
I am so sorry to hear of your loss and confusing time you are going through.
Diagnosing an ectopic pregnancy can sometimes be difficult, If no pregnancy can be seen in the uterus, or there is a small gestation sac in the uterus without a yolk sac or embryo, the pregnancy will be medically labelled as a Pregnancy of Unknown Location or PUL. It is important to understand that PUL is not a diagnosis; it is a label given until the final location of the pregnancy can be identified with certainty. In the event of a PUL, blood will be taken to measure serum progesterone and hCG and the hCG test repeated 48 hours later. The doctors would also want to repeat the scan. Discuss all your options with your medical team who have access to your personal medical notes.
Until the location of the pregnancy is known definitively or the serum hormone levels have decreased to below pregnancy levels, there is a risk of complications associated with an as yet undiagnosed ectopic pregnancy. For every 100 pregnancies labelled as a PUL about 10 will subsequently be found to be ectopic; and not all of these will need treatment.
If no pregnancy can be seen in the uterus but there is evidence of free fluid in your abdomen and or a possible ‘mass’ in the approximate location of one of your fallopian tubes, the doctor would then be likely to diagnose a possible ectopic pregnancy. An initial scan will detect over 70% of ectopic pregnancies. This will be why your Drs will want to repeat bloods.
There are a variety of methods to treat ectopic pregnancy, the injection of methotrexate is one of them but if your levels continue to decrease well, you may not need any medical treatment as the pregnancy will self resolve, this is known as medical management and we have more information about treatment options here
https://ectopic.org.uk/patients/treatment/
It is natural to ask 'why me', and whilst there are risk factors for ectopic pregnancy, many women including myself do not have any risk factors. I know that when I had my ectopic pregnancy I also looked for a reason and almost automatically we tend to blame ourselves. From the bottom of my heart, there is nothing you could have done to prevent the ectopic pregnancy from happening. I cannot emphasise enough - you are not to blame. Please be kind to yourself and I send you gentle hugs.
Karen x
The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust
Registered Charity Number: 1071811
Ectopic pregnancy patient information suite: Highly Commended in the 2019 BMA Patient Information Awards
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During the coronavirus outbreak, The EPT team is still working hard to provide crucial information and support to women and families experiencing ectopic pregnancy as quickly and efficiently as we can.
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Further information is available at ectopic.org.uk
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