Incompetant Cervix v/s premature labour

Suhani · 04-05-2006, 06:29 AM

Hi frds
I have a question as u all know i lost my twins at 20 weeks of gestation Dr checked me 10 days before delivery at that time my cervix was long and closed ,today i went to my Dr and she said i dont think that u were presenting with Incompetant cervix u were in full labour b/c IC pts dilate from 1st trimester but you were'nt so is there anyone who was diagnosed with IC and delivered babies just like normal labour(premature)like me ,and can anyone plz explain the diff b/w IC and premature delivery are these things connected to each other.
thx in advance

kwannabee · 04-05-2006, 03:20 PM

First of all so sorry for the loss of your babies... i too lost my girls at 22 weeks...one week i was fine the next my cervix was 0.3cm and membranes bulging...my girls were born perfectly natural, but because of the bulging i got chorioamnionitus which essentially rotted everything inside...babies and all.

I fought for an IC dx but like you i got the ptl answer...and its sort of like which comes first the chicken or the egg.

REgardless, right now if you ttc again you are automatically considered highrisk and will be entitled to extra monitoring where they can monitor your cervix more closely...(and if youre not FIGHT for it!!! ) with my last baby i was seen every two weeks...(see siggy) with my girls (even with history of preemature labor with my oldest son) they were too relaxed with me even though i was concerned. I learned the hard way to not keep looking til i got the answers i wanted...and my 8mo is sitting having a big poop right now in his playpen!

This is what i think...and i could be totally wrong medically speaking but this is based on my experience only (disclaimer here...dont quote me to your doctor ) with ptl you feel the labor...just earlier...the contractions, the bleeding whatever...with IC you dont feel anything...it happens without you knowing it and when it triggers labor THEN they say ... well i guess we should have approached this differently

The thing is they say IC happens to only 2% of nornal pregnancies...here on SC there is such a concentration of women who have gone through it that people tend to get nervous so doctors then say STOP going on the net...they get frustrated with us cus they think we are being overly anxious. THAT bothers me too...but thats a whole other thread...so i agree that the more you know the more you are a team player with your doctor...not just a patient sitting in his office...that makes a huge difference imo.

i wish you the best of luck...i lost two babies at once and technically speaking not two pregnancies...and alot of doctors hmmm and hawwww

Well i didnt care...i could not WOULD not go through that again and i persisted...i do not know how anyone on this board has the strength to go through this multiple times...i was broken and raw with one...i couldnt do it again.

Good luck with your research

Suhani · 04-05-2006, 05:25 PM

Thx Kim
I think now I am understanding that what went wrong,next time I'll ask my Dr to have a preventative cerclage,but i got pregnant after 5 yrs of struggle that also thru IVF thats why I am so worried.Do u have any idea that what further tests they will run before my blastocyste transfer.

kwannabee · 04-05-2006, 05:45 PM

all i can suggest is to have prepregnancy consult with a perinatologist...they cannot predict how your cervix will behave itself in a non pregnant state (thats what they told me) so there was nothing i could do to phyically 'prepare'...except to guarentee a preventative cerclage if i got preg again, give up my job, go on complete bedrest, bi weekly monitoring...plus upping my protein, water, vitimins (b12, omega 3-6-9, calcium/magnesium with vit D, vit C and E and prenatals.) For one reason or another i chose all those things...i see if i can find all my bookmarks...

it is a BIG commitment...but i would do it ALL again over and over if we could afford it...but my babymaking days are over. I never deal with an irritable uterus or contractions, or bleeding...for me it was strictly my cervix...at least this time...but there is so much info on this site...really use the search function and pay attention to peoples siggies...alot of stuff i did i learned here...

Phoenix Rising ^^^ · 04-05-2006, 09:40 PM

Suhani,

I am so very sorry this has happened to you. It's heartbreaking.

I've had 4 losses since June 2004. My first and second were due to IC. With my first I was 17 weeks, the Dr. told me it was just a fluke. I swtiched Drs and was pg again in Nov.2004. I lost that baby @16 weeks. I was told that my cervix was closed and long. That was two days before my water broke. I was told I didn't fit the profile for an IC. That was after I was taken to the hospital by ambulance and given an ultrasound and I was only dialated 1 cm. My Dr. told me that in her heart of hearts she didn't think this was IC but that it was preterm labor. I don't agree. Neither did the perinatologist I consulted with. The Peri told me it was a textbook case of IC. She also told me, that your cervix can change rapidly so, by the time I had the ultrasound my cervix probably looked different since the pressure was now off of it.

I would definetly consult with a Perinatologist.

I wish you only the best!

Suhani · 04-05-2006, 09:54 PM

thx Gina
Yesterday i went to perinatologist and she said that i have to wait 2-3 months after that she will run some tests and hysterosalpingogram just to see the anatomy of my uterus and then i will go to my RE for blastocyste transfer i feel so devasted dont know what to do i just want to get pregnant again and wants a healthy baby.
baby dust to all

LaurAnnHere · 04-05-2006, 10:04 PM

Sahuni, I lost twins at 17 weeks many years ago. I didn't have much medical supervision and certainly didn't have a clue about IC. I just blamed myself at the time.

During my pregnancy with my son I learned the truth. Two days after a vaginal u/s which showed a long closed cervix I went to the OB on a fluke. When I got there there was a little protein in my urine so they decided to check me. I was 3cm dilated with bulging membranes. I had no noticeable contractions or anything like that. No real notice whatsoever. I was rushed to the hospital. By the time I got there I was 4cm and contracting. They gave me mag and performed a rescue cerclage just in time. It was pretty scary, but my son made it. Had I shown up at the doctors office 5 minutes later than I did, I would have been 4cm dilated and contracting. Surely they would have called it preterm labor. That 5 minutes might have cost my son his life.

Suhani · 04-05-2006, 10:25 PM

thx Laura
the information that u r providing here is just amazing God bless You
i just registered on ur message board i lost the site can u plz send me the link once again thx

VivC · 04-06-2006, 12:40 AM

Suhani, it's www.fightic.com.

It's hard sometimes for doctors to tell whether it's IC or PTL, especially when the IC has progressed to the point that you're in labor. My only clue that something was wrong was a lot of mucousy discharge. I felt fine, though. When I went to the doc, they found that my membranes were bulging. By the time I got to the hospital, I was having very minor contractions that I couldn't even feel. Because they caught it BEFORE I contracted, mine was an easy diagnosis. Sometimes, though, it's not caught that early, and it's written off as PTL until another baby's lost.

Please insist on a cerclage next time. Especially since you lost twins - their combined weight can often trigger IC.

Viv

Suhani · 04-06-2006, 05:11 PM

thx VIVC:I spoke to my Perinatologist she said that cerclage is a foreign thing it can cause infection b/c I was insisting on it, what do u suggest,she was saying that she will run some tests and will do some cultures b/c Group B streptococus was positive,I need ur input plz.

Reebekah · 04-06-2006, 05:47 PM

its sometimes very hard to tell what happened....if the cervix opened and caused PTL, or if PTL caused the cervix to open, or if membranes ruptured (even a small leak) and caused PTL, or if an infection was present and caused PTL or rupture....there are so many possibilities. for me, no docs were SURE what happened first.......so they agreed to give me a preventative cerclage during the next pregnancy "just in case". since i didnt have any cervical problems during the pregnancy with the preventative cerclage, my doc doesnt really think i have ic now....BUT he said he will give me cerclage in all future pregnancies because he knows that i would never take a chance again without it.

i had an early miscarriage and then preterm delivery of my twins, so my docs did (upon my request) recurrent pregnancy loss testing....its a series of various tests....hormones, bloodclotting, chromosomes, etc....just to make sure nothing else was going on.

VivC · 04-06-2006, 05:58 PM

thx VIVC:I spoke to my Perinatologist she said that cerclage is a foreign thing it can cause infection b/c I was insisting on it, what do u suggest,she was saying that she will run some tests and will do some cultures b/c Group B streptococus was positive,I need ur input plz.

The risk of infection from a preventative cerclage is VERY low! And it only lasts about a week, during which time you can take oral antibiotics.

If you were positive for Group B Strep once, you're going to keep getting it - it never goes away. And, it's all the more reason for a cerclage, IMO. If your cervix opens even slightly, it can allow the bacteria to get in. That's what killed Rivi.

Are you able to switch to a high-risk doctor? I think that would be your best bet.

Viv

heidi 1973 · 04-06-2006, 06:59 PM

For our loss...we weren't and still aren't sure which started first, IC or PTL. We do think that it was PTL.

With my last pregnancy, I was on bedrest as I started having contractions at 15 weeks. It is believed that I have an irritable uterus as I contract so much from 15 weeks on. I met with a new peri just a few months ago to consult about another possible pregnancy and he doesn't feel that a cerclage is worth it for me. We are afraid that putting a stitch in would further irritate my cranky uterus. We are going to go with 1/2 days of bedrest this time and still have weekly u/s cervical checks.

I am not discounting the great advice from the other ladies about getting a cerclage...but rather wanted to give you my experience.

Did you have contractions in the days/weeks leading up to the birth of your boys?

Suhani · 04-06-2006, 07:06 PM

thx VivC
i am already visiting High risk Dr she is also a Perinatologist,actually during my pregnancy i was visiting two drs my regular OBGYN and other one was high risk dr .I spoke to my dr abt Group B streptococus and she said that its normally present in Vaginal Flora and we usually check this during the ninth or eighth month when the women is almost ready to deliver vaginally b/c it may cause fetus to get contaminated and get infection,and if women is positive with that bacteria then we treat her with antibiotics,there was no point to check u during ur second trimester for those infections,but this time she will check me for all the infections and treat me before the pregnancy.
one more thing:
Do u guys have any idea that what is the sucess rate of Frozen Embryo Transfer, and when its transffered do women carry their pregnancy to full term or are there still any chances of blighted ovum,missed abortion and m/c b/c I have never ovulated on my own never had any pregnancy on my own this is the only hope for me(THE IVF FROZEN EMBRYO TRANSFER) so i just wanted to know what r my chances.

Suhani · 04-06-2006, 07:10 PM

thx Heidi:
My pregnancy was going so smooth i didnt have any kinda contractions,it just started on sat nite around 11:30 PM and i then i saw bleeding around 3:30 am went to hosp and i was already 5-6 cm dilated when they checked around 7 am so they r still confused that wheater it was PTL or IC.