An ectopic or extrauterine pregnancy is one that, as its name implies, develops outside the uterus or womb, usually in the fallopian tubes, but can also occur in an ovary, the cervix or in some other place in the abdomen, putting the mother’s health at serious risk. It is not frequent, it happens approximately in one of every 90-100 pregnancies.
Ectopic pregnancies do not usually reach term (there are very exceptional cases), with gestational loss occurring in the first trimester. But as in any pregnancy, when fertilization occurs, levels of b-chorionic gonadotropin (b-hGC), also known as the pregnancy hormone, rise.
It is not a false positive, since a pregnancy has started. Even the woman can begin to feel the first symptoms of pregnancy. But the fertilized egg has not reached the uterus to develop properly, and therefore the pregnancy does not go ahead.
Ectopic pregnancy and HCG
As we have seen, in ectopic pregnancy, when the ovum is fertilized, the body secretes HCG , the pregnancy hormone.
In a normal pregnancy, Beta HCG levels double every other day and continue to increase during the first trimester as the embryo develops to a peak concentration in week 12-14 of pregnancy. However, in an ectopic pregnancy these values could stabilize or even increase, but at a very slow rate.
When the pregnancy is between four and five weeks from the last safe period, or when the Beta hCG in the blood is greater than 800-1000 mIU / ml, the gestational sac should be seen on a vaginal ultrasound. If the gestational sac is not observed, and the values are abnormal, we should suspect an ectopic pregnancy.
At the slightest symptom of ectopic pregnancy such as colic in the lower abdomen -initially on one side-; pain when urinating, having a bowel movement, or coughing; sharp pain spreading to the entire pelvis; or blood loss, go urgently to the doctor who will perform an ultrasound to check the location and viability of the embryo.
In Babies and more | Implantation bleeding or menstruation: how to differentiate them ?, Ectopic pregnancy: how to detect the first warning signs
