Miscarriages are the termination or end of a pregnancy.
A miscarriage can be intentional (often called an abortion by some), or non-intentional.
Frequently, the health care community will use the term non-intentional abortion interchangeably for a non-intentional miscarriage.
For simplicity the term non-intentional miscarriage, or just miscarriage, will be used and will be the center of attention.
What causes a miscarriage? Non-intentional miscarriages have many causes.
One cause of a miscarriage can be the incompatibility of the mother's blood and the blood of the unborn fetus.
Incompatibility in blood type with the mother and fetus is known as Rh factor incompatibility.
This type of miscarriage can occur when the mother's blood type is Rh negative and the fetus's blood type is Rh positive.
To expand, everyone has specific proteins on every cell in his or her body that tells the body that cell belongs to the body and is not foreign so that our immune system will not kill that cell.
The Rh factor is one of many specific proteins on our blood cells.
When there is a difference in the Rh factor between mother and fetus (mother is negative and fetus is positive) the mother's body recognizes the fetus as foreign and can cause a miscarriage.
However, Rh incompatibility is rarely a cause of miscarriages due to advances in health care.
Early in pregnancy, expectant mothers are tested for Rh factor type and appropriate measures are taken if the mother is Rh negative to avoid having a miscarriage.
Another cause of miscarriage is simply for unknown reasons.
Sometimes miscarriages occur and no obvious reason can be found.
Some people want to place blame on environmental factors such as pesticides, or the antibiotics and hormones that farmers use when raising livestock.
No such proof exists as of date that indicates the use of antibiotics and hormones in livestock causes miscarriages.
A third cause of miscarriage can be when the fertilized egg or ovum of the woman fails to implant or attach in the proper place.
In order to maintain pregnancy, the fertilized egg must implant inside the uterine cavity of the mother.
In ectopic pregnancies, the fertilized egg implants outside the uterine cavity.
Thus, a miscarriage will occur.
Many people term this a "tubal pregnancy".
Trauma or injury to the abdominal area while pregnant can also cause a miscarriage.
Injury caused by the impact of a steering wheel to the abdominal area in an automobile accident may cause miscarriages.
Other injuries such as blunt force to the abdominal area may result in a miscarriage.
Consumption of recreational or illegal drugs while pregnant puts the mother at a high risk of having a miscarriage.
Many illegal drugs have the ability to cross from the mothers bloodstream into the bloodstream of the fetus.
Because the organs of the fetus are still developing, they are not capable of filtering out the harmful substances in illegal drugs.
As a consequence, the harmful substances continue to build up and become toxic to the fetus.
Once toxic levels are reached, the organs begin to fail and the fetus can die.
In addition to illegal drugs.
some prescription drugs also have the ability to cross into the fetal blood circulation and can also result in miscarriages; thus a pregnant woman should never take prescription medication unless it is prescribed for her specifically, and the prescribing doctor is aware of the pregnancy.
Genetics can also be a reason why a woman would have a miscarriage.
A chromosomal abnormality that is incompatible with life will cause a miscarriage.
If this occurs early enough in the pregnancy, the woman may not have even known that she was pregnant.
This type of miscarriage does occur and the woman simply thinks she has had an extra menstrual cycle or period that month, when in fact she actually had a miscarriage.
A woman who has had previous intentional abortions in the past increases the risk for a miscarriage in future pregnancies.
Intentional abortions can cause the cervix to become incompetent, or irritable and result in a miscarriage.
Additionally, intentional abortions can result in the mother's body being unable to maintain adequate levels of hormones that are needed to maintain pregnancy.
Some of the more common symptoms of a miscarriage are: cramping, backache with light spotting, moderate bleeding, and failure to feel the baby moving.
However, these are not the only symptoms of a miscarriage.
If a miscarriage is suspected, one should immediately seek the attention of a health care provider.
A miscarriage can be intentional (often called an abortion by some), or non-intentional.
Frequently, the health care community will use the term non-intentional abortion interchangeably for a non-intentional miscarriage.
For simplicity the term non-intentional miscarriage, or just miscarriage, will be used and will be the center of attention.
What causes a miscarriage? Non-intentional miscarriages have many causes.
One cause of a miscarriage can be the incompatibility of the mother's blood and the blood of the unborn fetus.
Incompatibility in blood type with the mother and fetus is known as Rh factor incompatibility.
This type of miscarriage can occur when the mother's blood type is Rh negative and the fetus's blood type is Rh positive.
To expand, everyone has specific proteins on every cell in his or her body that tells the body that cell belongs to the body and is not foreign so that our immune system will not kill that cell.
The Rh factor is one of many specific proteins on our blood cells.
When there is a difference in the Rh factor between mother and fetus (mother is negative and fetus is positive) the mother's body recognizes the fetus as foreign and can cause a miscarriage.
However, Rh incompatibility is rarely a cause of miscarriages due to advances in health care.
Early in pregnancy, expectant mothers are tested for Rh factor type and appropriate measures are taken if the mother is Rh negative to avoid having a miscarriage.
Another cause of miscarriage is simply for unknown reasons.
Sometimes miscarriages occur and no obvious reason can be found.
Some people want to place blame on environmental factors such as pesticides, or the antibiotics and hormones that farmers use when raising livestock.
No such proof exists as of date that indicates the use of antibiotics and hormones in livestock causes miscarriages.
A third cause of miscarriage can be when the fertilized egg or ovum of the woman fails to implant or attach in the proper place.
In order to maintain pregnancy, the fertilized egg must implant inside the uterine cavity of the mother.
In ectopic pregnancies, the fertilized egg implants outside the uterine cavity.
Thus, a miscarriage will occur.
Many people term this a "tubal pregnancy".
Trauma or injury to the abdominal area while pregnant can also cause a miscarriage.
Injury caused by the impact of a steering wheel to the abdominal area in an automobile accident may cause miscarriages.
Other injuries such as blunt force to the abdominal area may result in a miscarriage.
Consumption of recreational or illegal drugs while pregnant puts the mother at a high risk of having a miscarriage.
Many illegal drugs have the ability to cross from the mothers bloodstream into the bloodstream of the fetus.
Because the organs of the fetus are still developing, they are not capable of filtering out the harmful substances in illegal drugs.
As a consequence, the harmful substances continue to build up and become toxic to the fetus.
Once toxic levels are reached, the organs begin to fail and the fetus can die.
In addition to illegal drugs.
some prescription drugs also have the ability to cross into the fetal blood circulation and can also result in miscarriages; thus a pregnant woman should never take prescription medication unless it is prescribed for her specifically, and the prescribing doctor is aware of the pregnancy.
Genetics can also be a reason why a woman would have a miscarriage.
A chromosomal abnormality that is incompatible with life will cause a miscarriage.
If this occurs early enough in the pregnancy, the woman may not have even known that she was pregnant.
This type of miscarriage does occur and the woman simply thinks she has had an extra menstrual cycle or period that month, when in fact she actually had a miscarriage.
A woman who has had previous intentional abortions in the past increases the risk for a miscarriage in future pregnancies.
Intentional abortions can cause the cervix to become incompetent, or irritable and result in a miscarriage.
Additionally, intentional abortions can result in the mother's body being unable to maintain adequate levels of hormones that are needed to maintain pregnancy.
Some of the more common symptoms of a miscarriage are: cramping, backache with light spotting, moderate bleeding, and failure to feel the baby moving.
However, these are not the only symptoms of a miscarriage.
If a miscarriage is suspected, one should immediately seek the attention of a health care provider.
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