Infections and miscarriage

Some infections can and do occasionally play a central role in miscarriage. Any acute infection which causes the woman to have a high temperature and be generally ill has the potential to cause miscarriage. Infections do not have to be in the genital tract to pose a risk to the pregnancy.

· Urinary tract infections (UTI), especially if they affect the kidneys, frequently lead to uterine activity and miscarriage.

· Syphilis is once again showing a disturbing upward trend in the western world. It has always been a menace in many developing countries; it is known to cause miscarriage and stillbirth.

· Conditions such as acute hepatitis, by causing high fever may lead to miscarriage.

· Appendicitis, an inflammatory condition inside the abdominal cavity can also lead to miscarriage

· Malaria remains a significant cause of miscarriage in tropical countries.

Alcohol and Miscarriage

There is evidence that sustained alcohol abuse can lead to pregn Early pregnancy smoking can lead to miscarriage ancy loss. Binge drinking, on the other hand, has not been associated with this problem (not that it is recommended!).

Smoking and Miscarriage

Cigarette smoking is a recognized risk factor for miscarriage. The risk increases with the number of cigarettes smoked. This is dealt with in greater detail in the section "Smoking in pregnancy".

Hormone injections to prevent miscarriage

The practice of administering progestin (progesterone) injections weekly (or more frequently) throughout the first trimester, sometimes even beyond was a rather common practice in the past.

It is known that progestin is crucial in the maintenance of pregnancy and it was assumed that somehow, for these women, this hormone was deficient and hence, supplements could resolve this problem.

Evidence of this theory in naturally conceived pregnancies is tenuous, to say the least; and evidence to the effectiveness of this treatment is lacking. The absence of evidence of benefit means this practice is now uncommon.

Next Page: Recurrent Miscarriage

Cigarette smoking in early pregnancy is a recognized risk factor for miscarriage