Can a woman have a miscarriage without knowing it?

Miscarriages are relatively common and it is possible to have a miscarriage without bleeding or cramping. The missed miscarriage is also known as “silent miscarriage”. It is called as “missed” because the body has not yet recognized that the woman is no longer pregnant. Around 50% of all pregnancies end up in some sort of miscarriage. This happens mostly in early pregnancy and most women feel that it is just a heavy menses. You may think that your period is a day or two late. The chance of miscarriage becomes 15% once the pregnancy goes beyond a month or so and you still might not have known. You may get to know it only when you go for an ultrasound and find there is no fetal heartbeat. This happens because of an event that happens inside the womb and the embryo stops developing due to it. It often causes cramping and bleeding, but sometimes it can also go unnoticed for several weeks. To avoid or to be on the safer side it is advised to visit the doctor for regular checkups & consult with the best gynecologist in Bangalore at Ovum Hospitals.

Signs of miscarriage-

Most miscarriages happen in the 1st trimester and the symptoms are different for everyone. Not every miscarriage is associated with pain. But most common ones are

• Vaginal bleeding and cramps – you may feel like bad menstrual cramps
• Large blood clots up to the size of lemon will pass.
• Abdominal pain
• Fever
• Weakness
• Back pain

Common causes of miscarriage –

Most of the women think that miscarriage happened because of themselves or their lifestyle. But, in fact, you have done nothing to cause it. You cannot prevent it from happening. Miscarriage cannot just happen because of mild exercises, or by drinking tea or coffee. The most common cause is a genetic abnormality in the embryo. Other problems that miscarriage include:

• Chromosome problems- in the process of fertilization, the egg and sperm each bring 23 chromosomes together to make 23 perfect pairs of chromosomes. This is a very complex process and any minor disturbance can result in genetic abnormality that stops the embryo from developing.
• Hormone imbalance – many miscarriages happen due to hormone imbalance such as insufficient progesterone levels that prevent your fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus.
• Thyroid disorders – thyroid problems may lead to infertility or cause recurrent miscarriages
• Diabetes
• High fever- if you fall sick and develop a high fever in your first trimester, you may experience a miscarriage.
• Chronic illness – autoimmune diseases like lupus, heart problems, kidney, and liver may cause miscarriage.

How to prevent miscarriage?

Miscarriage cannot be prevented in most cases. But you can take some measures to reduce the risk. These include- avoid smoking and drinking alcohol, maintain a healthy weight, maintain proper hygiene, eat a healthy diet, don’t do strenuous exercises, take enough rest, take precautions against infections, consult your doctor if you already have any chronic diseases.