- Diethylstilbestrol (DES): This was a synthetic oestrogen given to women with a history or risk of miscarriage in the 1950’s to 1970’s. Unfortunately, in some cases, the medicine resulted in the reproductive organs of the foetus not forming properly. If your mother took this medicine then it may have contributed to changes in the way your reproductive organs developed. However, doctors can usually see this when performing an ultrasound scan or when you are treated with surgery. Any changes in your reproductive organs as a result of DES are unlikely to go unnoticed.
- It is important to remember that the ectopic pregnancy was not your fault and that there was nothing you could have done to prevent it happening. The following commonly asked reasons are NOT causes of ectopic pregnancy:
- Ectopic pregnancy is not hereditary i.e. it is not a condition that passes from parent to offspring. You are no more at risk of an ectopic pregnancy than anyone else, even if your immediate family members suffered.
- Miscarriage is not related to ectopic pregnancy. Unfortunately, miscarriage is a very common and natural phenomenon that occurs in one in five first trimester (first 12 weeks) pregnancies but there is no link between the two conditions.
- Abortion is not linked to ectopic pregnancy. The decision to terminate pregnancy is a big decision based on the circumstances at the time and, if in those precise circumstances again back where the decision was being made, or in some cases having the decision made for us, then many of us would probably make the same decision over and over again. There are many inaccurate research articles online, often used as propaganda by pro-life groups, making tenuous links between termination and ectopic pregnancy. There is nothing at all, however, to be gained by frightening ourselves about a termination and whether it might or might not have contributed to a subsequent loss. We would ask anyone struggling with this issue to please be gentle with yourselves and don’t believe everything you read on the web, in the news, or in magazines. Always check the source of the figures that are quoted. Most of all, don’t beat yourselves up for something that cannot be changed and is unlikely to have contributed anyway.
- Exercise and sport in general, including intense exercise like spinning, makes no contribution to ectopic pregnancy
There is no evidence at all to link ectopic pregnancy to flying.
3.Symptoms of ectopic pregnancy
If you are a woman of childbearing age and have recently been sexually active, pains in your lower tummy may be due to many things. They could, however, be due to an ectopic pregnancy. If you are experiencing any of the following ectopic pregnancy symptoms, please call the NHS Direct 111 service by dialling 111, contact your out of hours GP service or your normal surgery, or visit your local Accident and Emergency department (A&E).GPs and hospital doctors may have difficulty reaching a diagnosis because symptoms may occur from almost immediately you are pregnant (4 weeks) up to 12 weeks or even later. The symptoms are also similar to other ailments such as gastroenteritis and miscarriage, the most common ways to misdiagnose an ectopic pregnancy. Please do be vigilant and take pain that concerns you seriously until absolutely proven otherwise. If your instincts are screaming at you that something doesn’t feel right, it’s OK to trust them and ask for a reassessment at any time.
Please click on the list of symptoms and they will open out if you need any more detail:Abdominal Pain
- One-sided pain in your tummy
- This can be persistent and severe or intermittent, which means it can come and go
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