Women at highest risk of miscarrying during pregnancy will receive a hormonal therapy from the NHS. It could increase birth rates by thousands every year.
The British health watchdog approved progesterone to expectant mothers suffering from spotting and bleeding after a previous miscarriage.
The National Institute of Health Care (NICE) made the approval based on research suggesting the therapy will prevent 8,450 miscarriages in the UK each year.
Under the new guidance, women with previous history of miscarriage in the early stages of new pregnancy, before a fetal heartbeat is detected, and who are experienced vaginal bleeding, will be given two 400mg doses of progesterone.
Although the hormone can be used in different amounts, it has been widely used as both a contraceptive and to reduce the symptoms of the menopause over the years.
Studies (stock photo) show that women with an history of miscarriage or bleeding problems in their early pregnancy stages will now receive a new hormone treatment. It could improve their chances of having live births by as much as 5- to 15%.
Two doses of the pessary are administered to your vagina once a day. It is a flexible, soft device that inserts two pills into your vagina.
The progesterone therapy will continue until week 16, if the fetal heartbeat can be detected on a second scan.
The hormone progesterone, which is naturally produced during pregnancy, can be found in the body. It is responsible for growing the lining in the womb, and it helps mother accept the child.
NICE’s new recommendation was based on an analysis of two studies into progesterone use in pregnancy. One trial was conducted in the UK, the other in the Netherlands. The second one was done only in the UK.
Study in Britain, which involved 4153 women with early pregnancy bleeding and found an increase of 5 percent in babies born to women with miscarriages.
The benefit was even stronger for women who previously had multiple miscarriages, with women who had lost three or more babies having a 15 per cent increase in live births.
Women who have never experienced a miscarriage were not eligible for any benefits.
The research was led by the University of Birmingham and pregnancy charity Tommy’s National Centre for Miscarriage Research.
A separate study estimated the cost of providing two 400mg doses of progesterone a day to be £204, on average, per pregnancy.
One in five pregnancies experiences bleeding within the first twelve weeks.
These women are likely to continue with their pregnancies, but two thirds of them will end up having a miscarriage.
Rarely, fewer than one per 100 women will experience repeated miscarriages.
An estimated 250,000 miscarriages occur in the UK every year. Most of these cases are within the first 3 months of pregnancy. In the vast majority of cases no specific cause of the miscarriage can be identified.
Miscarriage is a devastating experience for both the partner and the pregnant woman.
Women experiencing bleeding during early pregnancy should contact their unit to request to be examined. If the unit is closed they should visit A&E as soon as possible.