Research

Here is some information about immunological issues and miscarriages. I do link to articles, forums, and blogs. I know that some people think that doctors are experts, but they are not necessarily experts on your body. I've been misdiagnosed multiple times. Even doctors use the internet to do research. Being able to hear from women who have been in your situation can help you know what tests you might need to ask for. Be proactive.

I found the Yahoo group immunology support to be very helpful. They also have a secret Facebook group called reproductive immunology support. In order to join the Facebook group, you'll either need to ask in the Yahoo group to be added or have someone already in the group add you.

I've also written about what problems I thought I might have had. In the end, it turned out that I had high NK cells. For my high NK cells, I was given prednisolone, IVIG, and intralipids.

The doctor also suggested I take two OTC medicines. The first one was progesterone cream to help with a suspected LPD. If you use progesterone cream make sure it comes from natural sources. Emerita is recommended by Wray at Progesterone Therapy. On Amazon, Smoky Mountain Naturals is a best seller. The second was low dose aspirin to help thin my blood.

I had been taking both of those since I found information online from women who said it had helped them (which beings me back to the message I posted above about being proactive). I also took supplements. To find out more about the dosage of my prescription and over-the-counter medicines and when they were taken, please see my Rx protocol.


Info for Infertility and Immunological Issues

• The Bump has good questions to ask your doctor.
• Can't control everything after all has info about immunology
• Doing IVF with immune issues
• Dominion Fertility has 100 FAQs
• Dr. Bravemen's website is Prevent Miscarriage
• Dr. Beers' website is Repro-Med
• Dr. Beers, IVIG, and fish oil
• The Daily Mail's My Body Tried to Kill My Baby shows that most doctors dismiss immune issues. 
• This couple made the news with how much they spent on fertility treatments. She has issues with NK cells. 

Early miscarriages (chemical pregnancies) and RPL (repeat pregnancy loss)

• 5 steps to decrease the chance of recurrent miscarriages
• About multiple miscarriages
• Miscarriage Association, UK 
• LPD (luteal phase defect) can cause chemical pregnancies
• PDF about multiple miscarriages
• Recurrent early miscarriage due to thin uterine lining. 
• Scientists identify cause of multiple miscarriages for the first time

Treatments for Autoimmune, multiple miscarriages, and chemical pregnancies

• Baby Center has a good thread about prednisone for recurrent miscarriage
• Causes, tests, and treatments for multiple miscarriages  
• Licorice root (buy it from Amazon) can decrease the amount of NK cells 
• Maca (buy it from Amazon) is said to help with decreasing NK cells
• Natural treatments for autoimmune infertility concerns
• Progesterone may prevent miscarriages (If you use progesterone cream make sure it comes from natural sources. Emerita is recommended by Wray at Progesterone Therapy. On Amazon, Smoky Mountain Naturals is a best seller.)
• Ria Labs has info about immunotherapy preventing multiple miscarriages 
• Systematic enzyme therapy for infertility   
• The US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health has an article about the effect of prednisone, aspirin, low molecular weight heparin and intravenous immunoglobulin on the outcome of pregnancy in women with antiphospholipid syndrome.  
• Wobenzym N (buy it on Amazon) some women use this instead of IVIG or intralipids since it's OTC. It's been proven to help with immune related pregnancy loss. It's seen as a natural alternative to prednisolone.

OPKs (ovulation predictor kit) and HPTs (home pregnancy tests)
I took a lot of pregnancy tests. I needed to catch it early on so I could go to the hospital and get IVIG. I used Wondfo (and I used their OPKs as well) but I also heard that Clinical Guard is good. Peestick paradise has reviews of a bunch of HPTs.

There are cheap and expensive OPKs out there. I used Wondfo's OPKs, which are pretty affordable. Easy@Home are cheap as well. Some women try more expensive brands, such as Maybe Baby (which uses siliva ferning), Clear Blue digital OPK, or Clear Blue Fertility Monitor.

• Negative pregnancy test before a positive
• When can I expect a positive HPT?
• Urine sample vs. pregnancy test

Issues I Thought I Might Have

This information is found on the About page, but I've copied and pasted it here as well. All of these issues can cause implantation failure. Since my miscarriages occurred before or around 6 weeks, I thought that if I could stop my body from attacking the baby during implantation, then I should be able to carry a baby to term. You can see a list of everything I took/was given, such as IVs, hormones, vitamins, supplements, and medicine on my my Rx protocol.

Anatomical: Uterine abnormalities
Anything that is not normal is a uterine abnormality. Things such as the shape of your uterus, uterine scarring, and incompetent cervix (horrible name, it means weak cervix), can be it hard for the baby to implant and/or thrive.

Genetic: Chromosomal defects
Neither my husband nor I had been tested for anything so we didn't know if we could have been carriers, however, chromosomal defects in the baby could have caused miscarriages

Genetic: Thrombophilia

I thought I might have a type of thrombophilia disorder, such as antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), Factor V Leiden, or methylene tetra hydro folate reductas (MTHFR) because they can cause sticky blood and blood clots. This means that nutrients to the baby are cut off. That could explain why I had such early miscarriages.

Some people believe as many as 50% of the population has a type of MTHFR gene mutation (there are different kinds, such as homozygous and heterozygous). People with MTHFR cannot metabolize folic acid (the synthetic form of folate), so they should take folate. MTHFR living has more info on how to prepare for pregnancy if you have a MTHFR mutation. In order to thin my blood I started taking low dose aspirin at night before I went to bed. Taking pills at night cut down on my nausea. The doctor told me to stop using it at 10 weeks, but I continued throughout my entire pregnancy. I figured that if it wasn't broken, why change?

Hormones: LPD (Luteal Phase Defect)
Since my cycle was down to 23 days, I thought I might have a LPD. This means that the uterine living sheds too soon and the baby does not have enough time to implant into the lining. I took progesterone cream in order to help with this. It can also help so you don't get blood clots. If you use progesterone cream make sure it comes from natural sources. Emerita is recommended by Wray at Progesterone Therapy. On Amazon, Smoky Mountain Naturals is a best seller.

Here's some info on how to use progesterone cream by Wray Whyte. She has a bunch of information about progesterone therapy. I didn't use as high of a dosage as she suggested though. I only used 1/8 of a teaspoon twice a day. What works for me might not work for you.

B vitamins are also said to help with low progesterone. I was taking those as well.

Hormones: PCOS
I really didn't think I had PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) because I had no symptoms; however, I know that not every woman has symptoms. PCOS causes you to have too much testosterone as well as irregular cycles and difficulty in having the endometrium lining to develop properly. 

Infectious Disease: Mycoplasma hominis 
Another plasma issue is mycoplasma hominis like ureaplasma urealyticum can be responsible for RPL (recurrent pregnancy loss). I tested negative for this but your body is constantly changing.

Infectious Disease: Ureaplasma Urealyticum
I also know I have a high level of ureaplasma urealyticum and that might be responsible for RPL (recurrent pregnancy loss). However, when I went to the doctors, I wasn't tested for it.If I still had a high level it didn't affect this last pregnancy, but maybe that's because the IVIG did something and lowered it.

Immunological: High NK Cells
I also found out that high NK cells might cause RPL and attack the baby. Some doctors believe high NK cells are caused by inflammation, such as endometriosis or an immune-related disease, such as lupus. I was not tested for either.

Traditionally, prednisolone/prednisone (steroids), IVIG, and intralipids have been used to treat high NK cells. These are available by prescription only. There are natural OTC alternatives to prednisolone, such as Licorice root (buy it from Amazon), Maca (buy it from Amazon), and Wobenzym N (buy it on Amazon). Wobenzym N actually has been proven to help with immune related pregnancy loss.