QuestionHi there, my LMP is March 19th. I am due 24/12/09. I am 5 weeks and 6 days
pregnant. I am 30 yrs old and healthy. I had my HCG levels checked twice - at
5 weeks exactly it was: 2300. At 5 weeks 3 days it was: 8012. Then at 5
weeks 4 days I felt a hard knocking/pulsing sensation low in my abdomen
and went to the emergency department to have it checked out. They said I
was fine and sent me home - after giving me an HCG reading of 9300 (36
hours after the reading of 8012). At 5 weeks 5 days I had a vaginal scan which
found a gestational sac and a yolk sac, but did not find a fetal pole or
heartbeat. The scan technician told me I appeared to 5 weeks. I am booked
for another scan next week when I will be 7 weeks exactly. I have not had an
HCG reading done since the reading of 9300 at 5 weeks 4 days. What are my
chances of having a fetal pole and heartbeat ever found? What are my chances
of miscarriage or blighted ovum? Please help, I'm so worried. Best wishes,
Cheyne. (P.s. I had one miscarriage eleven years ago. I have a twelve year old
son. I do not have a history of infertility)
AnswerDear Cheyne,
It may have simply been a situation that your dating was off by a few days -- conception simply may have not actually taken place until a few days later than calculations suggested, so you were not quite as far along as you thought you were.
On the whole, blighted ova pregnancies are considered those in which the placenta (or placental parts) develop but the fetus does not. Often when small, the gestational sac cannot be distinguished from any early normal pregnancy, as there may be a yolk sac, though a fetal pole is not seen. It is not until after we would expect to see the fetal pole (the embryo can be observed and measured by about 5.5 weeks) that we can really differentiate between this problem and a normally developing pregnancy. This is why your doctor needed to wait until you were further along to determine if there was any problem with the pregnancy. In waiting until the 7th week, we would anticipate that the embryo can be visualized and measured and there is a high potential for heart activity to be present by that point.
There is just no way to know (regardless of your hCG results from week 5, which were still rising) whether your odds of blighted ovum or a miscarriage are high or low. I would suggest that unless you begin to experience cramping (like strong menstrual cramps) and/or clots or tissue passing with heavier bleeding, I would not be overly concerned about a pregnancy loss at this point.
I hope this has helped you and answered your question. I wish you well.
Brenda
