# Cytotec?



## MeepyCat (Oct 11, 2006)

I started to miscarry last week, today's u/s showed I was retaining some material, so they put me on cytotec (they offered me a choice - wait and see, cytotec or d&c). I was 9w when I started to miscarry, baby looked like she had stopped growing at 6w or so.

I am feeling really sleepy and out of it. Weird. Did anyone else have cytotec - could you tell me what it was like?


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## MiracleMama (Sep 1, 2003)

I took it to try to induce m/c after my blighted ovum. It did not work for me. I ended up needing to go in and get the d&c after all. I actually did two rounds of it but for some reason my body did not respond to it. from what my OB said though this is the exception....
Good luck to you. I'm very sorry for your loss.


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## patronus (Dec 21, 2008)

i am so sorry you are going through this. it's especially hard when even after waiting things don't resolve themselves and you've got a whole new set of hurdles to jump.

i had a missed miscarriage and tried cytotec (misoprostol). i was also supposed to be 9wks but was measuring 6.5. my dr. prescribed me 2 does of 200mg. i inserted the first one and waited a couple of hours before cramping started. it was mild but built up to about an 8 (out of 10) on the pain scale, accompanied by severe nausea around hour 4. i felt horrible for about an hour and by hour 5 i started to feel better. at hour 6 i had one wipe of pink but didn't experience any other bleeding. other than feeling emotionally wrecked from just finding out our baby wasn't alive, i didn't feel sleepy or out of it.
the next day i inserted the second pill but didn't really experience any bad side effects. by this time i was spotting a very small amount of brown but never really had any bleeding per se.
i spoke with my obgyn and she scheduled me for a d&c 5 days after i took the first dose. the d&c went fine and if i were in this situation again, i think i would just opt for the d&c first.
my obgyn said she is "conservative" about the quantity of cytotec she prescribed because the side effects can be so harsh. i've heard of other people taking as much as 400-800mgs at a time, a few times.

good luck and please check back in about how you are doing. i'll be thinking of you.


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## patronus (Dec 21, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *MiracleMama* 
from what my OB said though this is the exception....

yeah, my obgyn said cytotec works about 75% of the time.


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## MeepyCat (Oct 11, 2006)

Patronus, the sleepiness is pretty much overriding the emotional wrecked-ness. But my son will get home from daycare eventually, and I'm going to have to be at least a little functional.

They have me on 800 mcg. It seems to be doing its appointed work. I'm taking advil for pain, so I haven't felt too much in the way of cramps.


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## moonglowmama (Jan 23, 2002)

I took cytotec for a miscarriage I had in which things weren't happening as fast as I needed to at the time. I took an oral dose, not sure of the amount, but I took it after dinner and within about 45 minutes I was having heavy cramping. I stayed awake most of the night with the pain, even with taking 800mg motrin, but it was a lot like low, cervical kind of cramping with very little relief. By morning I was feeling much better and the bleeding had tapered off considerably. I was changing my pad during the night every 1-2 hours and it wouldn't be full, but it would be heavy. Oh, and I was 10 weeks, but baby was only measuring about 6 weeks.

I hope everything goes well for you. Remember to keep hydrated and take care of yourself.


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## baize2006 (May 21, 2005)

Sorry you are going through this it is really hard. I did not have Cytotec with my miscarriage; I had the D&C. I did have Cytotec with the induction of my first though and was shocked to learn how dangerous this drug is recently. It is not approved for use in pregnant women and causes many uterine ruptures. I'm not sure if that is true for miscarriages but I don't see why it would be different, so if you are feeling too odd I would have it checked out.

Here is a link to an article here on Mothering if anyone wants to learn more about this http://www.mothering.com/articles/pr.../cytotech.html


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## dinahx (Sep 17, 2005)

Oops


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## dinahx (Sep 17, 2005)

Double oops!


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## MeepyCat (Oct 11, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *baize2006* 
It is not approved for use in pregnant women and causes many uterine ruptures. I'm not sure if that is true for miscarriages but I don't see why it would be different, so if you are feeling too odd I would have it checked out.

From a purely engineering standpoint, I can see how it would be different.

When a women is at term, her uterine muscles are stretched, and the baby applies pressure from inside. The combination of an artificially intense contraction, and the baby's movement result in large stresses that could potentially lead to uterine rupture.

I'm not at term - when I was given Cytotec, I would have been 10w2d, except that it appears that the baby died at something like 6 or 7 weeks. Furthermore, I had already expelled a significant amount of the fetal tissue - an ultrasound failed to find the gestational sac and fetal pole that had been located the week before. I was given cytotec to assist in expelling fetal/placental matter remaining after 4 or 5 days of bleeding, to assure that this matter did not cause infection. When the cytotec contractions kicked in, there's good reason to believe that my uterine muscles were slack, and it was impossible that any contractions I had would interact with a conflicting force (like a full-term baby's kick or wriggle).

I would not consent to Cytotec for induction of labor at full term because of the safety concerns that you cite, but I do consider it a safe alternative to D&C for treatment of an incomplete miscarriage in the first trimester.


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## dinahx (Sep 17, 2005)

And adding that D&Cs are WAY more unsafe than we are led to believe. 30.9% (according to peer reviewed journals) of D&Cs for Missed Miscarriages will lead to Asherman's syndrome which can lead to future losses, infertility, expensive procedures to regain fertility, etc. Also there is a risk of infection and uterine perforation, the risks of Fentanyl, Propaful, and Versed both seperately and combined, etc, etc.

I was VERY grateful for the Cytotec option in my recent m/c. I was very grateful for anything that gave me some hope of avoiding the D&C.


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## annethcz (Apr 1, 2004)

I don't have much useful to add. I did have cytotec as a precursor to a D&E after I lost a baby at 20 weeks a few years ago. I didn't notice much an effect, but it was only in for a few hours befer I was knocked out for the procedure. I was VERY groggy after that. Although I was concerned about the use of cytotec, I did talk to the OB/GYN about the difference between using cytotec on a full-term uterus and on a uterus that isn't as stretched out. If I hadn't taken the cytotec, the surgeon would've had to manually dialate my cervix, so although I'm usually anti-cytotec, I'm glad it was an option.

I'm so sorry for your loss, and I hope you feel better soon. Please don't feel like you need to push past the emotions quickly. Whatever you're feeling is okay. Be gentle with yourself.


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