How long after a miscarriage do you stop bleeding
Miscarriage - What happens - NHS
If there's no pregnancy tissue left in your womb, no treatment is required.
However, if there's still some pregnancy tissue in your womb, your options are:
- expectant management – wait for the tissue to pass out of your womb naturally
- medical management – take medicine that causes the tissue to pass out of your womb
- surgical management – have the tissue surgically removed
The risk of complications is very small for all these options. It's important to discuss them all with the doctor in charge of your care.
Expectant management
If you have a miscarriage in your first trimester, you may choose to wait 7 to 14 days after a miscarriage for the tissue to pass out naturally. This is called expectant management.
If the pain and bleeding have lessened or stopped completely during this time, this usually means the miscarriage has finished. You should be advised to take a home pregnancy test after 3 weeks.
If the test shows you're still pregnant, you may need to have further tests.
If the pain and bleeding have not started within 7 to 14 days or are continuing or getting worse, this could mean the miscarriage has not begun or has not finished. In this case, you should be offered another scan.
After this scan, you may decide to either continue waiting for the miscarriage to occur naturally, or have drug treatment or surgery. If you choose to continue to wait, your healthcare professional should check your condition again up to 14 days later.
Contact your hospital immediately if the bleeding becomes particularly heavy, you develop a high temperature (fever) or you experience severe pain.
Medicine
You may choose to have medicine to remove the tissue if you do not want to wait, or if it does not pass out naturally within 2 weeks. This involves taking tablets that cause the cervix to open, allowing the tissue to pass out.
In most cases, you'll be offered tablets called pessaries that are inserted directly into your vagina, where they dissolve.
The tablets usually begin to work within a few hours. You'll experience symptoms similar to a heavy period, such as cramping and heavy vaginal bleeding. You may also experience vaginal bleeding for up to 3 weeks.
In most units, you'll be sent home for the miscarriage to complete. This is safe, but ring your hospital if the bleeding becomes very heavy.
You should be advised to take a home pregnancy test 3 weeks after taking this medicine.
If the pregnancy test shows you're still pregnant, you may need to have further tests.
You may be advised to contact your healthcare professional to discuss your options if bleeding has not started within 24 hours of taking the medicine.
Surgery
In some cases, surgery is used to remove any remaining pregnancy tissue. You may be advised to have immediate surgery if:
- you experience continuous heavy bleeding
- there's evidence the pregnancy tissue has become infected
- medicine or waiting for the tissue to pass out naturally has been unsuccessful
Surgery involves removing any remaining tissue in your womb with a suction device. You should be offered a choice of general anaesthetic or local anaesthetic if both are suitable.
After a miscarriage
A miscarriage can be very upsetting, and you and your partner may need counselling or support.
You may also have questions about trying for another baby and what happens to the miscarried foetus.
For more information, read what happens after a miscarriage.
Page last reviewed: 09 March 2022
Next review due: 09 March 2025
What Does a Miscarriage Look Like? Bleeding, Duration, and More
A miscarriage is a spontaneous pregnancy loss before 20 weeks of gestation. Some 8 to 20 percent known pregnancies end in miscarriage, with the majority happening before the 12th week.
The signs and symptoms of miscarriage vary from person to person. Symptoms may also vary depending on how far along you are. For example, a fetus at 14 weeks will be much larger than a fetus at 5 weeks of gestation, so there may be more bleeding and tissue loss with a later miscarriage.
Miscarriage symptoms may include:
- spotting or bleeding from the vagina
- abdominal cramping or pain in the lower back
- passage of tissue, fluid, or other products from the vagina
Read on to learn more about identifying a miscarriage and what to do if you suspect you’re experiencing one.
Bleeding may start as light spotting, or it could be heavier and appear as a gush of blood. As the cervix dilates to empty, the bleeding becomes heavier.
The heaviest bleeding is generally over within three to five hours from the time heavy bleeding begins. Lighter bleeding may stop and start over one to two weeks before it completely ends.
The color of the blood can range from pink to red to brown. Red blood is fresh blood that leaves the body quickly. Brown blood, on the other hand, is blood that’s been in the uterus a while. You may see discharge the color of coffee grounds, or near black, during a miscarriage.
Exactly how much bleeding you’ll experience depends on a variety of circumstances, including how far along you are and whether or not your miscarriage is progressing naturally.
While you may see a lot of blood, let your doctor know if you fill more than two sanitary pads an hour for two or more hours in a row.
What does a missed miscarriage look like?
You may not experience bleeding or other symptoms with a miscarriage, at least at first.
A missed miscarriage, also referred to as a missed abortion, happens when the fetus has died but the products of conception remain in the uterus. This type of miscarriage is usually diagnosed via ultrasound.
Just as with the amount of blood you’ll see, the duration of a miscarriage will vary from person to person and even from pregnancy to pregnancy.
In many cases, a miscarriage will take around two weeks to pass naturally. Your doctor may prescribe the medication misoprostol (Cytotec) to help a miscarriage pass more quickly. Bleeding may start within two days of beginning the medication. For others, it may take up to two weeks.
Once the miscarriage has started, the tissue and heaviest bleeding should be passed in about three to five hours. After the fetus has passed, you may still experience spotting and mild tissue loss for one to two weeks.
It may be difficult to tell a very early miscarriage from a late period. In fact, many miscarriages happen before a person even knows they’re pregnant.
In general, a miscarriage will cause more intense symptoms than a menstrual period. For example:
- Your menstrual flow may be relatively similar from month to month with heavy days and light days. A miscarriage can also have heavy and light days, but bleeding may be especially heavy at times and last longer than you’re used to.
- Bleeding from a miscarriage may also contain large clots and tissue you don’t normally see during your period.
- Cramps can be a part of your normal monthly cycle, but with a miscarriage, they may be particularly painful as the cervix dilates.
- The color of blood during your period can range from pink to red to brown. If you see a color you’re not used to seeing, it may be a sign of miscarriage.
Always contact your doctor if you’re pregnant and experience bleeding. While a miscarriage can’t be stopped once it starts, you doctor can run tests to help determine if you’re experiencing the loss of your pregnancy or something else.
To diagnose a miscarriage, your doctor will likely perform an ultrasound to look for the baby’s heartbeat, if you’re far enough along to see a heartbeat. Your doctor may also order a blood test to check human chorionic gonadotropin (hcG) levels to see if they’re rising or falling.
If a miscarriage is confirmed, your doctor may suggest “expectant management” or waiting for the miscarriage to pass naturally. This generally happens within two weeks.
Incomplete miscarriage
The miscarriage may be incomplete if:
- your bleeding is particularly heavy
- you have a fever
- an ultrasound reveals there’s still tissue in your uterus
If this is the case, your doctor may suggest a dilation and curettage (D and C), which is a surgical procedure done to remove remaining tissue. The procedure is done under general or regional anesthesia, and is considered safe. D and C doesn’t usually lead to long-term complications.
Threatened miscarriage
It’s important to report any bleeding or pain you experience in your pregnancy to your doctor.
In some cases, you may have what’s called a threatened miscarriage, and there may be certain treatments that can help. These include:
- hormone supplements if the bleeding is caused by low progesterone
- a cerclage (stitch in the cervix) if the issue is with the cervix opening prematurely
Speak with your healthcare provider if you’re looking to get pregnant again after a miscarriage. While it may be safe to start trying after your first normal period, you may want to schedule a checkup depending on the cause or the number of miscarriages you’ve had.
The reason for loss isn’t always known, but around half of miscarriages are caused by issues with the baby’s chromosomes.
Other possible causes include:
- uterine issues
- hormonal imbalances
- other health conditions, such as diabetes, autoimmune disorders, or polycystic ovary syndrome
After a miscarriage, you may have hcG in your blood for one to two months, which could lead to a false positive pregnancy test.
In most cases, your period will return within four to six weeks, though you may start ovulating almost immediately following a miscarriage.
Speak with your doctor about birth control options if you don’t wish to become pregnant after a miscarriage.
Will I miscarry again?
Having one miscarriage doesn’t necessarily increases your chances of having another. The risk remains around 20 percent.
Two or more miscarriages is referred to as recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL). The risk of miscarriage after two losses is 28 percent. After three consecutive losses, it increases to 43 percent.
Only 1 percent of people experience three or more miscarriages. About 65 percent of those with unexplained RPL go on to have successful pregnancies.
Activities like exercise, work, morning sickness, and sex don’t cause miscarriages. Even things like smoking or drinking alcohol or caffeine, which can lead to other complications, are also unlikely to lead to early pregnancy loss.
A miscarriage can be physically painful, and it may also cause a variety of emotions. While your body may recover in a few weeks, be sure to take time to process your feelings, grieve, and reach out for help when you need it.
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Bleeding after abortion: normal or cause for alarm
Uterine bleeding after termination of pregnancy is a common phenomenon in obstetric practice that occurs on the first day after the operation. The intensity and duration of blood loss are individual and depend not only on the characteristics of the female body, but also on the type of abortion.
Features of bleeding after abortion
Bleeding may be completely absent during the first two days after surgical termination of pregnancy, but later increases to menstrual bleeding and continues in some clinical pictures up to 6 weeks. This pathology indicates a hormonal imbalance, that is, there is insufficient "support" of endometrial tissues, which supports the development of pregnancy.
As a result of this bleeding after termination of pregnancy can only intensify, and continue intermittently for several weeks. It is important to understand that here we are talking about pathology. Most women of reproductive age are concerned about the main question, how long will the bleeding after an abortion last? The question is individual, but if it does not pass more than two weeks after getting rid of the fetus, it is important to urgently contact the local gynecologist. The duration of the hemorrhage also depends on the gestational age: the earlier an abortion is performed, the more likely it is to solve such a piquant problem in a gentle “mode” and without serious consequences.
Cause of abnormal bleeding after an abortion
The occurrence of bleeding after an abortion should not confuse the patient, but its duration should be a cause for concern. Among the pathological causes of this symptom, the following should be singled out:
- Perforation of the uterus;
- Injury of the cervix;
- Presence of residual fetal tissue;
- Blood clotting disorder;
- The reaction of the female body to individual anesthetics.
With such diagnoses, along with hemorrhage, there is an obvious violation of the temperature regime, convulsions, general weakness, fainting, hypotension, increased heart rate. It is important not to ignore such signs of shock, but to visit a medical center and a qualified specialist in a timely manner.
How to deal with bleeding after a miscarriage
It is important to understand that to stop prolonged bleeding after a miscarriage at home is impossible, only a competent gynecologist can determine an accurate and effective treatment regimen. Delay in this matter can cost the patient her life.
If the appeal to the doctor is timely, then the first thing the patient is referred for is an ultrasound scan. This accurate clinical examination allows to determine the etiology of the pathological process and the future treatment regimen. If it became known that there is residual fetal tissue in the uterus, additional surgical intervention is necessary to properly clean its cavity.
In case of mechanical damage to the uterus or its cervix after interruption, the gynecologist prescribes the repair of the injured area of the uterus, bladder or intestines. Possible complications
Bleeding after an abortion is dangerous for women's health and causes serious damage to the woman's reproductive system. Among the potential complications, doctors distinguish infertility, malignant tumors and even death of the patient. Therefore, the problem needs to be addressed in a timely manner, and early termination of pregnancy in order to avoid heavy bleeding.
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Treatment and prevention of miscarriage
Miscarriage. Symptoms
Causes of a miscarriage
Questions to ask your doctor about a miscarriage
Diagnosis of a miscarriage
If there is a risk of a miscarriage, your doctor may recommend that you rest until the bleeding or pain stops. Your doctor may also recommend that you abstain from sports and sexual activity.
It is better not to travel, and especially not to travel to places where it is difficult to get emergency medical care. Thanks to the widespread use of ultrasound, it is much easier these days to know if an embryo has died or never formed at all, and to know for sure that a miscarriage will occur. In this case, there are several options:
Expectant tactics. Before ultrasound was used in early pregnancy, most women had no idea that they were going to have a miscarriage. Some women allow the process to develop naturally. Usually a miscarriage occurs a few weeks after the death of the embryo is established. Unfortunately, this process can take three to four weeks. From an emotional point of view, this can be quite a difficult period.
Conservative treatment for miscarriage. If, after diagnosing a miscarriage, a woman decides to speed up the process, then the removal of the embryonic tissue and placenta from the body can be provoked by taking certain drugs.
Some medications are taken by mouth, but your doctor may prescribe intravaginal medications to increase their effectiveness and reduce the risk of side effects such as nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Most likely, a miscarriage will occur at home. The time of action of the drug may vary. You may also need more than one dose of the drug. In 70% of cases, the drug begins to act within a day, and a miscarriage occurs in the next few days or weeks. Surgical treatment. Another treatment option is vacuum aspiration and curettage. During this procedure, the doctor opens the cervix and, using a special device, gently sucks tissue from the uterus. Sometimes a special metal surgical instrument with a loop at the end (curette) is used to scrape the walls of the uterus after vacuum aspiration. Complications are rare, but the connective tissue of the cervix or the wall of the uterus may be damaged.
In the event of an unavoidable miscarriage, surgery is necessary to stop the bleeding.
Lifestyle and home care
Physical recovery
In most cases, physical recovery after a miscarriage takes a few hours to a few days. It will take 4-6 weeks to return to a normal lifestyle. During this period, if you experience heavy bleeding, fever, chills or severe pain, you should contact your doctor. These signs and symptoms may indicate an infection. For two weeks after a miscarriage, you should not have sex, use tampons, or flush your vagina.
Subsequent pregnancy
It is possible to become pregnant during your period immediately after a miscarriage. If you and your partner decide to try for a baby, make sure you are emotionally and physically ready for it. The doctor may recommend to postpone this process until the next menstruation, and maybe even more.
More than three miscarriages in a row should be investigated to determine the underlying causes, such as uterine abnormalities, coagulation problems, or abnormalities at the chromosomal level.
In some cases, the doctor will suggest that you get tested after two miscarriages in a row, but two miscarriages still may not have hidden medical reasons. If the cause of miscarriages cannot be determined, do not lose hope. 60-70% of women who have had consecutive miscarriages can become pregnant in the future, even without treatment. Coping with illness and finding support
Psychological recovery can take much longer than physical recovery. A miscarriage is a painful loss that others will not be able to fully understand. You can experience completely different feelings: from anger to despair. Give yourself time to process this grief and find support from loved ones. Don't blame yourself for what happened. You may not be able to forget all the hopes and dreams you had for this pregnancy, but over time, acceptance will ease the pain. Talk to your healthcare provider if you are experiencing deep sadness or depression.
Prevention
With so many possible causes of miscarriage, there is simply no way to prevent it.
