Incompetent Cervix... Help!

Aprildanl · 09-09-2004, 07:12 PM

This may not be appropriate, but I have some questions for cysters that have had to deal with an incomptent cervix....

I have read on this site- more than once- of tragedies becuase of IC. Women that have all of a sudden with no warning gone into labor and lost the baby. This scares me- especially since I am carrying TWINS.
How do you know if you are at risk for IC?
What are symptoms?
Why- for the people it has happened to- did the Dr. not catch it in enough time???

I have had one internal exam at 10w3d as well as 3 sono's (last one dating 9/02) and they keep telling me that all is fine. When I asked about IC the Dr. kind of laughed at me and said I have nothing to worry about right now becuase I have never had it before and I don't have any signs such as spotting, cramping, etc....

If anyone can shed any light onto the subject or give some preventative tips, I would be sooooo appreciative!!!!

Thanks!
April

kwannabee · 09-24-2004, 09:34 PM

Hi April...congratulations on your twins!! Someone asked this same question once on the pregnancy board (which i lurk on to learn from ) and i answered this question in depth...i'll see if i can find it again.

Anyway, until then the first thing i would say is relax. Relax because stress and anxiety affect you hormonally and you dont need that...it affects the baby and it affects your hormones and you want to keep them stable as much as you can

2nd of all, IC is a 'diagnosis by history'

Unfortunately from what my doctors told me after i lost my girls there there is no way to gauge the strength of your cervix until you are pregnant, and unfortunately even then (like me) it comes without warning.

My cervix measured 3.8 and two weeks later i was 5cm dialated and i felt nothing. But looking back i DID feel something...i just didnt recognize it.

First of all...you must must MUST rest off your feet as much as you can.

You must drink lots and lots of water cuz it relaxes your uterus.

Try not to strain during bowel movements I used a stool softener

***If you feel 'sweaty' or 'itchy' or 'leaky' down there...call your doctor.***Not necesarrily bleeding...i had no bleeding or spotting whatsoever until days after dialation

If you all of a sudden feel 'heavy', or like your belly is overhanging and 'noticable' ...or that your lower back aches a bit call your doctor...

If you worry about anything...CALL YOUR DOCTOR!! DON'T diagnose yourself...dont worry about being a pest...and dont let anyone convince you otherwise if your intuition is telling your something is wrong...ASSERT YOURSELF!!

understand ( and this is hard) that twins have a 50/50 chance of preterm labor...thats what i was told...so obviously they should check your cervix EVERY ultra sound.

Just try to enjoy your pregnacy and think positive. Pm anytime!

VivC · 10-14-2004, 02:07 PM

I freaked out about IC my entire pregnancy. I asked my doctor about it, and he said that I had no risk factors, so I'd be fine. He was SO wrong.

As already mentioned, call your doctor if you have any concerns at all. I too, didn't "feel" anything when my cervix opened. My membrane was bulging 2" into my vagina, and I didn't feel a thing! My only clue was a lot of clear mucous - it wasn't even bloody. I almost didn't even go to the doctor - I thought I was being silly.

Often, there isn't bleeding or cramping. I don't mean to scare you, but I want you to call your doctor if you think anything's out of the ordinary. And, if s/he doesn't seem concernced, but you still are, just go to the hospital. The night I went into labor, my doctor told me I'd just been doing too much (a doctor's appointment that day), and I should take some motrin and drink some water. Thank God we didn't listen. An hour later, my water broke! We still lost our Rivi, but at least we were in the right place to get help.

I'm praying for you and your kiddies!

Liesl123 · 10-14-2004, 03:31 PM

I had absolutely no symptoms, woke up in the middle of the night when I was 21 weeks along and there was a lot of bright red blood. No bleeding, no cramping, and absolutely no contractions. I went to the hospital and I was 6-7 cm dilated with bulging membranes and I could not feel a thing. Felt totally normal so I was thinking to myself that everything would still be okay. I did not actually go into labor until 8 hours after the bleeding which I noticed when I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. I believe that IC usually presents between weeks 18 and 22. If you are concerned, maybe you could ask your doctor to check your cervix during that time frame. From what I understand, your cervix "funnels" with IC which they can detect on a pelvic ultrasound. Best of luck to you.

AvivaElona · 10-15-2004, 01:40 AM

Make them do a sonogram to check your cervical length. Being pregnant with Twins is a possible risk factor. That said, most people with twins do not have IC (later PTL is a bigger concern). Still if you are worried about it there is simply no reason why they can't check. At 20 weeks with twins, if you are going to show signs of IC, this would be the time it would show up by. If your cervical length is good now, chances are pretty good it will stay good. By 28 weeks some of the cervical pressure is usually reduced so the IC risk period is between about 16 and 28 weeks with 18-24 weeks being the time when most cases show up.

Symptoms are pressure, cramping (but not necessarily contractions) and increase in cervical mucus...all also normal pregnancy symptoms. Basically IC is symptomless, that is what makes it IC and not PTL.

There really is no prevention, but if you do have a weak cervix making sure you stay off your feet as much as possible, and resting when you are tired can help.

Hang in there, chances are much better that you don't have it than that you do...it really isn't that common a condition, though it does seem like a lot of us cysters have it.

Aviva

PS this is up to you of course but if they won't check it I'd go to the ER complaining of pressure and heaviness in the pelvis.