Q: I am six weeks pregnant and have two small places where the tiny fetus is slightly disconnected from the uterine wall. I had very light bleeding (like a dry paintbrush) for about two weeks, although it stopped almost 100% about 5 days ago.
After the first ecography my doctor said it could be a retained abortion. I returned in 10 days and the fetus had grown. There were still two small places in the picture where he saw the slight disconnections. He said "It looks like this one is going to be successful," but I am worried. What herbs or vitamins can help "glue" the fetus in place to help ensure that it doesn't spontaneously abort?
Also, in the first ecography he said he saw what he would initially diagnose as a benign myoma in the front wall of the uterus, not very big.
-M.A.G.
Check Ann Frye's two books. Vitamin E, bioflavinoids and A; herbs: wild yam tincture (15 drops a day) and nettle leaf. I have a friend who had a c-sec for her first baby (weighed 7 lbs) where she had a myoma growing at the same time during her pregnancy. What helped her were Anne Frye's books, rest, no stress, excellent nutrition and prayers.
-Connie Dello Buono
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Did you have a real-time "ecography"? If so, at six weeks the doctor would have been able to see your baby's heart beating and the issue of retained abortion would have been answered. Also, I'm sure you were talking about the placenta's attachment to the uterine wall and not the fetus.
Bleeding in the first trimester is not uncommon, especially near the times you would have been menstruating. It's most likely caused by the growing placenta attaching to the uterine wall. As a midwifery student you must know that all pregnancies are not successful. There are so many millions of things that must be "right" to get a healthy baby. When some of those things aren't right--genetic pairing for instance--nature is kind and abortion results.
Between the early 1940s and mid 1970s "glue" was discovered, prescribed, and used on millions of women and their babies. It is called Diethylstilbestrol or DES. The devastating results of this "glue" were not evident for many years after it was taken. Unfortunately, DES can still be purchased *over the counter* in many developing countries.
My advice: keep yourself healthy--eat well, drink water, exercise and don't worry! Worry is interest paid on trouble before it comes due, and it doesn't change a thing. -Jeanne Batacan, CMA, ICCE, CLE ====
I am a master''s student in human genetics currently preparing my thesis before I go on to my PhD. I am studying the role of folate in early pregnancy for prevention of neural tube defects. I have come across a fair amount of literature connecting a common enzyme variant involved in folic acid metabolism with this type of placental accident. If you were to have this variant enzyme, it is possible your folate requirements cannot be met by a good diet because this enzyme works less efficiently than the more common one most of us have. Additional folate may also help you prevent further problem with the placenta. As long as you do not have a vitamin B12 deficiency you will not be harmed by taking extra folate nor will the baby. It will also benefit you later in pregnancy, reducing your chances for other placental difficulties including intrauterine growth retardation and placental pervia. You should be on a minimum of 1 mg a day combined with vitamin B12. Any standard prenatal vitamin has this. You may require more depending on your folate status. Your red blood cell folate levels should be in the high normal range. If they are in the low normal range and you have been taking folate all along, you may well need more, perhaps as much as 5 mg. Ask your midwife about that. Refs on request.
-Natalie K Bjorklund
Reprinted from Midwifery Today E-News (Vol 2 Issue 3, Jan 21, 2000)
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