# Risks of D&C vs. Natural Miscarriage - late first trimester



## brambleberry (Oct 20, 2011)

I found out 4 days ago that the baby had died at (well, measuring) 9 1/2 weeks. I was 10 weeks exactly. I have been unable to find hard statistics on the risks of D&C vs. the risks of natural miscarriage. I'm especially concerned with the risks to future fertility. I'm willing to put up with the increased pain and inconvenience of a natural miscarriage if I knew there was a benefit to doing it that way, although I'm not willing to put up with something that might last more than 24 hours. I haven't read any personal accounts of natural miscarriages of fetuses that measure more than 8 weeks that were anything but horrific.

Does anyone have websites to suggest that give statistics on risks?

Has anyone out there had a 9-10 week (fetal age) miscarriage naturally? What was your experience?

Thanks!


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## M Anna (May 27, 2011)

I just PMed you.


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## Milk8shake (Aug 6, 2009)

You should check out this thread. Lots of accounts of losses at various gestations.

I don't think there is much "benefit" to doing it naturally, other than the fact that some women find it emotionally easier to deal with.

The risks of a D&C are very, very small. Tiny, in fact. And some women find that emotionally easier.

My 12.5 loss was natural, and incredibly painful, but reasonably quick. Less than 24 hours all up from go to whoa.

My last four losses have been D&Cs. I've found that a lot easier to cope with. It gave me some control.

I did research the statistics alot at the time of my first D&C which is a long time ago now, mainly because I have a uterine anomaly, and I came to the conclusion that it was okay. I should also note that I have had a hysteroscopy reasonably recently which showed that I don't have any scarring as a result.

At the end of the day though, it is up to you.


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## brambleberry (Oct 20, 2011)

I'm still waiting to miscarry. This coming tuesday will be three weeks since what they estimate the fetal death was, and I'm afraid I'm going to have to intervene in some way because of the risk of infection past that point. I have yet to find anything that clearly states the risks for D&C specifically for miscarriage. Most sites say that the risks overall for D&C's are very small, but it's supposed to be higher for miscarriage or postpartum than for the other things that D&C's are performed for. I've found a couple sites that quote an insanely high risk for Asherman's syndrome with D&C's for miscarriage (16-32%!). But both doctors I've talked to think that is totally off base, and really you don't hear that many people having problems with it. You would think that if the risks were really that high you would hear so many stories. If I go with more conventional estimates of the risks then the risks for inducing a miscarriage are much higher than a D&C, and way more painful, so I'm now leaning toward doing the D&C.


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## jodieanneanton (Apr 8, 2010)

Oh, Brambleberry. I am so sorry this is taking so long for you.  The D&C would be less painless and you may end up needing to get one anyway if things don't go well with a natural miscarriage. It is such a hard and personal choice. I hope you find what's best for you, dear. (((HUGS)))


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## jenniferlynne (Jun 17, 2006)

I'm so sorry you're going through this. It's not an easy decision. I personally had a D&C at 10 weeks and, for me, it was the right decision. I'd been in limbo for a few weeks already, not sure if I'd miscarry or not, and I just needed it to be over. The procedure went fine and I had no complications whatsoever. I did think long and hard, though, about whether to wait and let it happen naturally, because my best friend DID end up with Asherman's syndrome after having her fourth D&C. Ultimately, though, the risk from one D&C seemed small enough for me to make it worthwhile. As others have said, you need to decide what is right for you.


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## brambleberry (Oct 20, 2011)

An update:

I had a D&C on Monday. It went pretty smoothly, though I did have a lot more bleeding than usual - the doctor told my husband that it was similar to the amount of bleeding he usually sees in a c-section. I haven't talked to him yet, will see him on Friday. If I bled that much with a D&C it makes me think that it might have been worse if I had miscarried on my own at home, but you can never really know these things. It also makes me a little worried that whatever measures the doctor had to do to stop the bleeding could lead to scarring, which was my main worry about having a D&C. ...oh well.

We asked to have the remains of the baby back to be able to bury under a tree at home. Apparently no one ever asks for this because no one at the hospital knew how to go about it or whether they could. But they did finally figure things out for us. It had to get sent out to a lab for diagnostics first. I didn't know before going into surgery whether or not we'd be able to have it back, and that was a little hard. The lab tech kept calling my baby "the specimen", which honestly I understand and don't mind, but she would make this big pause every time she said it, searching for another word, and I think that was painful for both of us. It turns out that in Indiana (it varies by state) they can only release "lab specimens" to a funeral home. Luckily there's a funeral home in town that has a policy of not charging for their services in the case of a baby's death, and they include unborn babies in this policy. They picked it up from the hospital and released it to us quickly with no hassles and no questions. If it had been over 20 weeks they couldn't have released it to us, they would have had to cremate it or inter it.

So this morning we were finally able to bury our baby, whose death we found out about almost 3 weeks ago. It feels so good to finally have closure. We planted a paw paw tree over it with a flat stone next to the tree that we can place flowers on. We've chosen not to name it. We didn't have a big service or anything, just said a prayer and placed flowers. Later I went back to the tree and sang the baby a lullaby. That was harder than burying it. But it does feel so freeing to be done with this stage.


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## aprilshower (May 25, 2011)

After attempting to have a natural miscarriage, I ended up needing a D&C at 13 weeks. For the 2 days prior, I had heavy blood loss and difficulty maintaining consciousness  I became very weak, dizzy, and of course scared. My ultrasound showed significant remaining tissue. I had been extremely opposed to D&C because I just didn't want anymore potential fertility issues (on top of my 2 losses which were apparently caused by my MTHFR homozygous C677T mutation). I cried and cried to my midwife and she helped me see that a D&C was the only option to keep me safe. So I had the D&C with an apparently gentle and expert surgeon, accompanied for hours in the hospital by my super sweet mw who was there keeping me safe and caring for me. It was a great relief to no longer be bleeding to death after, but it has also been sad - feeling like I gave birth but have no baby to hold  And my 13 week pregnant belly looks just like I do postpartum  I bled a good amount for the first 12 hours after the D&C but lightly after that.


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## brambleberry (Oct 20, 2011)

I'm so sorry you had to go through all that. Blessings as you heal.


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