Overview
Majority of recurrent early miscarriage does not happen by chance. Recurrent early miscarriage is not an illness but an indicator that the patient has underlying conditions that will result in a miscarriage.
Unexplained miscarriage accounts for up to 50 percent of all recurrent early miscarriages. However, clinical research by Dr Chen revealed that an immunological factor causes 70 percent of all unexplained recurrent miscarriages.
Symptoms of Immunological Miscarriage
- Two or more consecutive miscarriages
- Miscarriages happened before week 12
- Miscarriages happened around the same gestational week
Risk Factors:
Various factors can increase the risk of recurrent immunological miscarriage. These include women with:
- History of induced abortion
- History of childbirth (cesarean or natural)
- History of engaging in sexual intercourse during menstruation
What causes Recurrent Early Miscarriage
All the risk factors above might lead to immunological miscarriage because in those situations, paternal genes (fetal tissues or sperm cells) will be present in the mother’s body, and there is a chance for the paternal genes to enter her bloodstream.
Once the paternal genes enter the mother’s bloodstream, her body will detect the paternal genes as a foreign protein and produce anti-embryonic antibodies as a natural immunity reaction. During subsequent pregnancies, the placenta’s fibronectin layer, which serves as an immunological barrier for the fetus, will be targeted and dissolved by the anti-embryonic antibodies. Without the protection from the fibronectin layer, the fetus will be expelled by the mother’s immune cells within the first trimester, leading to what we call “recurrent immunological miscarriage.”