I am pregnant and the doctor thinks I have ectopic pregnancy....?

Question

the HCG level in my blood rose but didnt double over 2 days, I am 6 weeks pregnant and I have no pain or bleeding, I have looked at lots of sites on the subject but cant find out when I should be experiencing pain if it is an ectopic, I know all women are different but surely there must be a stage in ectopic pregnancy where the pain starts, anyone know anything about this??? I am having a scan in 2 days time which should hopefully tell me more but its driving me insane so I thought I would try and find out something more.

Answer 1

The only way to tell for sure is through ultrasound. If it is ectopic, you'll have to have immediate surgery. I'm a little surprized they're waiting 2 days to do an ultrasound too, unless you're in Canada or something. If you experience sudden pain, you need to get to the hospital ASAP. Ectopic pregancies can be life threatening for the mother, so this is nothing to mess around with. I'm sorry if it is too.

Answer 2

Classically an ectopic pregnancy is associated with cramping or sharp pelvic pain on the side where the embryo implants. Vaginal bleeding may or may not occur and if it does it is often a small trickle of brownish old blood.

However, there are many ways an ectopic can show itself and it depends a lot on where the ectopic is implanted and how big it is.

Usually a small ectopic doesn't cause any pain whatsoever - that's why you can put up with it for 6 weeks or so.

Then it gets to a critical size and either causes pain by stretching the structures it is in or can cause pain by eroding through structures.

So pain can be none at all, or a little bit, or VERY VERY SEVERE!

Sometimes if the ectopic is picked up early, then operations can be easier on the body - telescope operations (laparoscopy) and a quick suction clean up of the ectopic.

If the ectopic is picked up late then the operations need to be bigger - taking out the entire fallopian tube sometimes, or if it erodes into the abdominal cavity sometimes you might need a big operation to clean everything out and maybe even take out bits of your bowel if they are affected.

Sounds to me like your (astute) doctor is suspicious this maybe an ectopic nice and early ... you don't have pain yet.

Watch with the scan.

If you get pains, get to hospital quick!

Cheers!

Answer 3

Hi i had an ectopic pregnancy a few years ago.
I experienced my first pains at about 5-6 weeks but they only lasted for about an hour, then the excruciating pains started at about 8 weeks.
I had a light period before which is why i did not think i was pregnant although it was about a week late tests were coming back negative as well.
I also suffered pain in my shoulder which i later found out was due to internal bleeding, i was 12 weeks pregnant when they discovered it was an ectopic pregnancy , doctors had on 3 occasions sent me home with anti biotics thinking i had an infection.
I hope evrything goes well for you, if you need a chat feel free to email me.

Answer 4

I had an ectopic pregnancy a few years ago. I started to bleed slightly at about 6-7 weeks that had a brown colour. Then about a week later I was in intense pain on one side of the body and bleeding quite heavily. I was abroad and had to postpone the return flight because I could not even get out of bed.

Since I had a miscarriage the year before, the doctor just told me to rest. When I returned to England I was 8 weeks and went to my GP, but the hospital would not see me until 4 days later. On the day, I felt a sharp pain and went to the hospital. They did an internal scan but could not see the foetus and wanted to send me home, but I insisted that I still felt pregnant. A more senior doctor was called and saw that my right hand side was swollen and said that I need an operation straight away.

It all happened very fast and there was no time to think straight and ask questions. The foetus was removed with the fallopian tube. I consider myself lucky as I could have died if prompt action was not taken.

I was depressed for a while and did not try to have children until I met a very good chinese doctor. He gave me hope and helped me to get my health back on track. Since then I have given birth to a beautiful boy and girl.

With my track record I had to be scanned as soon as I found out I was pregnant and it was very worrying. But that is all in the past now. I hope that my experience will be of help. I hope that your prenancy is fine because I would not wish my worst enemy to go through that experience. If it is ectopic, I just want you to know that you still have the chance to have babies.

Good luck.

Answer 5

hi
i know this is a very worrying time for you.
I had an ectopic in January last year.I found out i was pregnant at about 6 weeks. I went in for an early scan because i only have one fallopian tube. When i went in they couldn't find anything and so they took a blood test and told me to go back in 5 days for another scan. At that scan they couldn't find anything and they took another blood test. They found my hormone levels were not doubling. I had one more scan and that's when they told us it was ectopic. I was lucky because i didn't need an operation they gave me methotrexate which dissolves the pregnancy so your body gets rid of it naturally. During all this time i never had any pain or bleeding. I had pain when the methotrexate was working and i needed to take codine. i had 8 weeks off work to help me recover.During this time they take blood tests every week to check the hormone levels were going back to normal. We had to wait 3 months until we could start trying again.
I now have a 5month old daughter.
I wish you all the best and i hope everything is OK.

Answer 6

When i miscarried a few years ago my hgc levels didn`t go down and so the consultants thought my pregnancy may be ectopic , they wanted me to stay in hospital as it would have been very dangerous should my fallopian tubes burst , i refused to stay in as it was xmas day and i was gutted and wanted to be with my other toddler at the time although i had to return to the hospital on Boxing Day they said i could go home but if i felt any of these pains : dragging sensations in the thighs , pain across the shoulders or chest pains i was to phone 999 for an ambulance . Over the following days my hcg levels declined and it was a miscarriage after all , but within 12 weeks i was pregnant again and i had my second baby girl ..

Answer 7

It all depends on what kind of ectopic pregnancy it is and where the fetus is located. Sometimes an ectopic pregnancy is totally out of the uterus and the fallopin tubes and progress normally. I think you should just try to sit back, relax and hard to say but wait to find out what the dr has to say. I know this is all easier said than done but it will help you to just try to relax. I hope that everything works out for you and that you hear nothing but good news. But like you said everyone is different all all pregnancies are different too. Just wait and see what the Dr has to say.
GOOD LUCK

Answer 8

i had an ectopic pregnancy and unfortunately i had to have surgery because it ruptured. I was very lucky to survive. I actually had no pain or discomfort or infact any bleeding. It wasn't until my scan showed my womb was empty that the hospital decided to investigate. They did pregnancy tests over 10 days then sent me for a laporoscapy. When under anesthetic they discovered it had ruptured. So not all people get pain. Hopefully you will not have to experience anything like i did. Take care and hope you get over this soon.

Answer 9

Ectopic means "out of place." In an ectopic pregnancy, a fertilized egg has implanted outside the uterus. The egg settles in the fallopian tubes more than 95% of the time. This is why ectopic pregnancies are commonly called "tubal pregnancies." The egg can also implant in the ovary, abdomen, or the cervix, so you may see these referred to as cervical or abdominal pregnancies.

None of these areas has as much space or nurturing tissue as a uterus for a pregnancy to develop. As the fetus grows, it will eventually burst the organ that contains it. This can cause severe bleeding and endanger the mother's life. A classical ectopic pregnancy never develops into a live birth.



What Are the Signs and Symptoms?
Ectopic pregnancy can be difficult to diagnose because symptoms often mirror those of a normal early pregnancy. These can include missed periods, breast tenderness, nausea, vomiting, or frequent urination.

Pain is usually the first red flag. You might feel pain in your pelvis, abdomen, or, in extreme cases, even your shoulder or neck (if blood from a ruptured ectopic pregnancy builds up and irritates certain nerves). Most women describe the pain as sharp and stabbing. It may concentrate on one side of the pelvis, and it may come and go or vary in intensity.

Any of the following additional symptoms can suggest an ectopic pregnancy:

vaginal spotting or bleeding
dizziness or fainting (caused by blood loss)
low blood pressure (also caused by blood loss)
lower back pain
What Causes an Ectopic Pregnancy?
An ectopic pregnancy results from a fertilized egg's inability to work its way quickly enough down the fallopian tube into the uterus. An infection or inflammation of the tube may have partially or entirely blocked it. Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is the most common of these infections.

Endometriosis (when cells from the lining of the uterus detach and grow elsewhere in the body) or scar tissue from previous abdominal or fallopian surgeries can also cause blockages. More rarely, birth defects or abnormal growths can alter the shape of the tube and disrupt the egg's progress.

How Is It Diagnosed?
If you arrive in the emergency department complaining of abdominal pain, you'll likely be given a urine pregnancy test. Although these tests aren't sophisticated, they are fast - and speed can be crucial in treating ectopic pregnancy.

If you already know you're pregnant, or if the urine test comes back positive, you'll probably be given a quantitative hCG test. This blood test measures levels of the hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), which is produced by the placenta. The hormone hCG appears in the blood and urine as early as 10 days after conception, and its levels double every 2 days for the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. If hCG levels are lower than expected for your stage of pregnancy, doctors are one step closer to diagnosing ectopic pregnancy.

The doctor will also give you a pelvic exam to locate the areas causing pain, to check for an enlarged, pregnant uterus, or to find any masses in your abdomen. You'll probably also get an ultrasound examination, which shows whether the uterus contains a developing fetus or if masses are present elsewhere in the abdominal area. But the ultrasound may not be able to detect every ectopic pregnancy.

A less commonly performed test, a culdocentesis, may be used to look for internal bleeding. In this test, a needle is inserted into the space at the very top of the vagina, behind the uterus and in front of the rectum. Any blood or fluid found there likely comes from a ruptured ectopic pregnancy.

Even with the best equipment, it's hard to see a pregnancy that's less than 6 weeks along. If your doctor can't diagnose ectopic pregnancy but can't rule it out, he or she may ask you to return every 2 days to measure your hCG levels. If these levels don't rise as quickly as they should, the doctor will continue to monitor you carefully until 6 weeks, when an ultrasound can be used.

What Are the Options for Treatment?
Treatment of an ectopic pregnancy varies, depending on its size and location and whether you want the ability to conceive again.

An early ectopic pregnancy can sometimes be treated with an injection of methotrexate, which dissolves the fertilized egg and allows your body to reabsorb it. This nonsurgical approach minimizes scarring of your pelvic organs.

If the pregnancy is further along, you'll likely need surgery to remove the abnormal pregnancy. In the past, this was a major operation, requiring general anesthesia and a large incision across the pelvic area. This may still be necessary in cases of emergency or extensive internal injury.

However, the pregnancy may sometimes be removed using laparoscopy, a less invasive surgical procedure. The surgeon makes a small incision in the lower abdomen and then inserts a laparoscope. This long, hollow tube with a lighted end allows the doctor to view internal organs and insert other instruments as needed. Sometimes, a second small abdominal incision is made for the instruments. The ectopic pregnancy is then surgically removed and any damaged organs are repaired or removed. General or regional anesthesia may be used.

Whatever your treatment, the doctor will want to see you regularly afterward to make sure your hCG levels return to zero. This may take up to 12 weeks. An elevated hCG could mean that some ectopic tissue was missed. This tissue may have to be removed using methotrexate or additional surgery.

What About Future Pregnancies?
Approximately 30% of women who have had ectopic pregnancies will have difficulty becoming pregnant again. Your prognosis depends mainly on the extent of the damage and the surgery that was done.

If the fallopian tube has been spared, the chances of a future successful pregnancy are 60%. Even if one fallopian tube has been removed, the chances of having a successful pregnancy with the other tube can be greater than 40%.

The likelihood of a repeat ectopic pregnancy increases with each subsequent ectopic pregnancy. Once you have had one ectopic pregnancy, you face an approximate 15% chance of having another.

Who's at Risk for an Ectopic Pregnancy?
The risk of ectopic pregnancy is highest for women who are between 35 and 44 years old and have had:

PID
a previous ectopic pregnancy
surgery on a fallopian tube
infertility problems or medication to stimulate ovulation
Some birth control methods can also increase your risk of ectopic pregnancy. If you get pregnant while using progesterone-only oral contraceptives, progesterone intrauterine devices (IUDs), or the morning-after pill, you're more likely to have an ectopic pregnancy.

Try not to worry, wait until you have the scan.. Best wishes

Answer 10

my dr thought i had an ectopic pregnancy because they couldnt find the baby and my hcg levels didnt double either but guess what i now have a beautiful girl 11 years old even the test they plan to do may not find the baby im praying that everything will be ok i even spotted the first 6 weeks but she is the proof drs are not always right best of luck