A missed miscarriage, is also known as a missed abortion or a silent miscarriage.
It occurs when a fetus is no longer alive, but the body does not recognize the pregnancy loss or expel the pregnancy tissue.
In such cases the placenta may continue to release hormones, continuing with signs of pregnancy.
It is diagnosed when a fetal heartbeat is absent, and a subsequent ultrasound shows an underdeveloped fetus.
With a missed miscarriage dont exhibit the most common miscarriage symptoms, such as:
Vaginal bleeding
Heavy cramping
Expulsion of fetal tissue
Some women may notice that their pregnancy symptoms, like breast tenderness, nausea, or fatigue, may disappear.
Some women may also have brownish or red vaginal discharge.
Approximately 1-5% of all pregnancies will result in a missed miscarriage.
The most often cause of missed miscarriages are chromosomal abnormalities in the fetus, since these abnormalities do not allow the pregnancy to develop.
In early miscarriage in pregnancy, women will often be able to expel the pregnancy tissue naturally.
If there is not natural expelling of pregnancy tissue a D&C procedure can remove the contents of pregnancy, and can cut down on infections, which may occur if the fetal tissue remains.