New research has found that increasing the progesterone hormone in women who have had miscarriages or experience early bleeding in pregnancy could increase their chances of carrying a baby to term.
The study, conducted by the University of Birmingham, found that taking progesterone pessaries increased live birth rates by 15% for women who had experienced multiple miscarriages. Progesterone maintains the lining of the womb and supports the immune system, so is essential to maintain during pregnancy.
Miscarriage impacts one in five women, with 1% experiences recurrent miscarriages. Vaginal bleeding in early pregnancy has been linked to an increased risk of miscarriage, a symptom all of the 4100 women in the study had experienced.
The research involved giving progesterone vaginal pessaries to 2000 women while a further 2000 received a placebo in order to test how successful the hormone is in preventing miscarriage. While the results showed that not all could be helped by taking progesterone, those who had a history of recurrent miscarriages received the greatest benefit.
Results showed that in women who had experienced one or two miscarriages, 76% of the women who took progesterone went onto have a live birth, compared to 72% who were in the placebo group. For women who had three or more miscarriages, the results were much greater, with 72% of women who took the progesterone hormone going on to have a live birth compared to 52% in the placebo group.
However, study leader Arri Coomarasamy, a consultant gynaecologist at Birmingham Women and Children's Hospital said that the treatment would only work for women who had progesterone-related problems, which is just one of many complex reasons that women can miscarry. That being said, he states the treatment could save thousands of babies and provides a plan for women who are currently offered nothing when they are potentially miscarrying.
‘The results from this study are important for parents who have experienced miscarriage; they now have a robust and effective treatment option which will save many lives and prevent much heartache,’ said Jane Brewin, chief executive of miscarriage charity Tommy's, ‘It gives us confidence to believe that further research will yield more treatments and ultimately make many more miscarriages preventable’
Now, the researchers are calling on national guidelines that outline treatment for women at risk of miscarriage to be updated with their discoveries. ‘Our finding that women who are at risk of a miscarriage because of current pregnancy bleeding and a history of a previous miscarriage could benefit from progesterone treatment has huge implications,’ said Coomarasamy, ‘We hope that this evidence will be considered by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.
For support in coping with miscarriage, visit www.Tommys.org__.