Blighted ovum

28Sep07

A blighted ovum, or anembryonic pregnancy occurs when a fertilized egg never develops an embryo after attaching itself to the uterine wall. The gestational sac, however, continues to develop until a spontaneous miscarriage occurs or a dilatation and curettage is done.

Signs and symptoms:

The usual signs of early pregnancy may be present (missed period, nausea, vomiting, etc.). A urine pregnancy test shows a positive result.

Diagnosis:

Transvaginal ultrasound (TVS) is usually requested to check for viability of an early pregnancy. There should be a gestational sac of adequate size (mean diameter of 13 mm and above) but with no visible yolk sac and embyonic pole on TVS in order to make a diagnosis of a blighted ovum.

It must be noted that a very early pregnancy with a small gestational sac (less than 13 mm diameter) may not show visible signs of either a yolk sac or embryonic pole yet, therefore a diagnosis of blighted ovum cannot be made yet. Repeat TVS should show an enlarging gestational sac and appearance of yolk sac and embryonic pole when the gestational sac is large enough in order to judge for viability of the pregnancy.

Causes:

Majority of blighted ova occur because of the presence of chromosomal abnormalities.

Treatment:

In some cases, the blighted ovum may spontaneously be aborted. However, some doctors and patients would prefer a D&C for physical and psychological closure.


Filed under: Gynecology, Obstetrics, diagnosis, pregnancy, treatment   |  7 Comments
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7 Responses to “Blighted ovum”  

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  1. 1 rona t. legaspi on December 14, 2007 said:

    i have experienced blighted ovum,but i have my curiosity if i have a chance to get pregnant because for about 2 years without contraceptives, i didnt have pregnancy after my miscarriage due to blighted ovum.. my question is,if there a chance for me to have a baby?

  2. 2 docjoey on December 18, 2007 said:

    Hi. A blighted ovum does not lessen your chances for a subsequent pregnancy, so, yes there is a chance for you to have a baby later on.

    However, you should probably consult your OB, because I have a feeling that you may have other causes for your “secondary” infertility. It’s secondary because you had a pregnancy before, albeit it was a blighted ovum. 2 years with no contraceptive means is long, so you and your husband (or partner) may need to look into other causes. It’s best if you have the infertility workup as a couple, not just you alone. The causes of not successfully having a conception may be either on the male partner, the female partner or both, so it’s best if a workup is done with the two of you present.

  3. 3 Nana Connie on January 11, 2008 said:

    I experienced a blighted ovum. That word blight is descriptive. Not so much in definition, but the way it sounds was the way I felt… blighted. Def. something that impairs or destroys. an impaired or deteriorated condition.

  4. 4 jyothi on June 11, 2008 said:

    I had 3 miscarriage because of Blighted ovum.Now i am worried & no hope that i will get baby in future.Pls guide me.I am very depressed.me & my husband both undergone Karyotyping.Its normal.so doctors are not able to find the exact reason for miscarriage.

  5. 5 avalonrose on October 1, 2008 said:

    I am enduring my second blighted ovum. The first was 2 1/2 years ago, my first pregnancy. I am now pregnant again, supposed to be 7 weeks, although my bloodwork shows a 2 week pregnancy. I am devastated. I am wondering if all my eggs are bad. I had a d&c performed the first time. I am thinking maybe i should let this one pass naturally. I don’t know. This is just so hard.

  6. 6 Madeline on March 3, 2009 said:

    Hi I’m a US citizen in Brazil to visit my husbands family. I found out I was pregnant due to a simple urine test from the pharmacy. I should mention that I have a one and a half year old that recently quit breastfeeding so my periods were still irregular. We thought we were around 10 weeks pregnant, but I had a light brown blood spot one morning and immediately went to the emergency room. They performed an ultrasound and determined there was not a baby formed within the sac. No yolk is visible and they said the rim of the sac is slightly misshapen. So although they speak portuguese and gave no English terminology for my condition, after my research, I have come up with the term Blighted ovum. I have read stories of women waiting it out to see if the baby forms, my problem is I am in Brazil. I will not be returning to the states for 20 more days and I’m afraid to have surgery here. Can my body miscarry on its own? Is it possible that I am not as far along as we thought? Is it safe to have a procedure like a D&C performed in Brazil?
    Should I just wait and see what happens? I’m alone here and really need some advice!
    Madeline

  7. 7 docjoey on March 15, 2009 said:

    Hi, Madeline. I apologize for the delay in reply. I do not visit this blog as often as I want to. Anyway, you can still wait and observe in the meantime. Some women do “miscarry” a blighted ovum spontaneously. Although a D&C is a pretty common and standard gynecological procedure and I am sure that the hospitals in Brazil are well equipped to do such, I also believe that you should be able to communicate properly with the doctors who would do the procedure so that you would have a good discussion and a well-informed consent. Personally, I waited for another month before having the procedure because I wanted to make sure that my pregnancy was really “non-viable” before having it ended.


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