Hormone That Prevents Abortions

For decades doctors have prescribed progesterone, one of the key hormones your body needs during pregnancy, to prevent abortion. Hormone, produced by ovaries, is necessary to prepare the body for implantation. As pregnancy progresses, the placenta produces progesterone, which promotes cervix contractions and early birth.

But a new study by Great Britain shows that taking progesterone to women experiencing bloodshed in their first quarter does not result in a more successful birth than a placebo. However, for a small group of mothers who had experienced previous “aborts, the numbers showed improvements.

The study, conducted at the National Abortion Centre at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, is the largest of its kind, including 4,153 pregnant women who have experienced bloodshed in the dangerous early weeks of pregnancy. Women were accidentally divided into two groups, one group taking 400 milligrams of progesteron through one vaginal guess, and the other taking placebo in the same amount. Both groups have received these materials during their 16th week of pregnancy.

From the group that received the progesterone, 75% continued to have a successful, full-time birth compared to 72% taking placebo.

As the study notes, for most women, taking progesterone “did not result in a markedly higher incidence of successful births than placebo”. But for women who had experienced one or two previous abortions, the result was a 4% increase in the number of successful births. And for women who had experienced three or more repeated abortions, the number went to a 15% increase.

Dr. Arry Coomarasamy, professor of gynecology at the University of Birmingham and director of the National Abortion Research Centre of Abortion, said the implications for that group are “large”. “Our discovery that women who are in danger of an abortion due to the current pregnancy bloodshed and a previous history of abortion can benefit from treatment with progesterone, has major implications for the practice,” he said.

It has been estimated that 1 out of 5 pregnancies ends in abortion. And while even a drop of blood undoubtedly increases mother fear in expectation, bloodshed is actually a very common phenomenon during pregnancy, Coomarasamy said. However, bleeding in the first quarter is especially dangerous, causing abortion in one third of cases.

So for women who have experienced this problem many times, the findings of Coomarasamy are an important way to consider. This treatment could save thousands of babies you might have lost from an abortion of”, he added.

The study is among a number of recent discoveries made by doctors seeking to further understand what causes abortions and what can be done to prevent them. While about 70% of abortions are attributed to chromosomeal anomalies, doctors recently learned that some genetic abnormalities that exist in a small group of future parents can be discovered by testing mother and father, as well as the embryo.

Doctors have also found that even the knowledge of child sex can predict the complications a mother may face.

But while there are no comprehensive solutions to prevent abortions, for some couples, the use of progesterone offers a hope.