Vital Signs: Ectopic Pregnancy

Vital Signs: A Dangerous Pregnancy Ectopic pregnancies are very dangerous to women, and those who do not receive treatment before the time frame of six weeks to ten weeks may suffer fatal consequences. The internal bleeding caused by ruptures within the fallopian tubes can amount to blood loss so severe it’s fatal. Preventive surgery or early treatment can stop such tragedy from occurring, but early detection and recognizing the symptoms of an ectopic pregnancy are instrumental in averting casualties. Janetha Richards, a thirty-two-year-old kindergarten teacher, was thrilled with the news of her pregnancy, but she was unaware of the complications that had occurred within her reproductive system. “An episode of spotting a month after missing …show more content…
Conditions like endometriosis or sexually transmitted diseases like gonorrhea or chlamydia can interfere with the typical fertilization process and prevent the smooth passage of the egg from the ovaries to the uterus through the fallopian tubes. Scarring resulting from these diseases can result in small pouches being formed that can trap the egg, where, if fertilized, it will grow in place. The walls of the fallopian tube are inelastic, and as the egg grows, the tube will eventually rupture, usually occurring after six to ten weeks. Blood vessels break and blood pours into the abdomen. “Without treatment, women often die” (Massad, 2007). Richards was lucky, and she received an emergency operation, where torn muscle and embryonic tissue were cut out and her uterus was sown back together. Unfortunately, this rendered her infertile, as her other fallopian tube was scarred close because of her previous chlamydial …show more content…
Spotting and pain are typically the symptoms that tip off doctors of an ectopic pregnancy, and an ultrasound further confirms the diagnosis. The scan would reveal an empty uterus and sometimes blood that has leaked into the pelvis. A mass implanted in one tube is a clear indication of where a pregnancy has begun. If an ultrasound fails to yield definitive results, the levels of pregnancy hormones can be tested. Growth is slow in ectopic pregnancies because they are not implanted in tissue that is meant to nourish a growing embryo, so failure of hormone levels to rise can allow diagnosis within eight weeks. This allows for the noninvasive termination of the pregnancy through the chemotherapy drug methotrexate, which is toxic to growing fetal tissues. A laparoscopy can also be used for treatment, where a small camera is used to diagnose the site of the pregnancy and to treat