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Made to Miscarry

Thyroid Autoimmunity
and Miscarriage

By Teri Brown

Dr. Gelman says that while there can be an increased risk for miscarriage when thyroid autoimmunity is present, it is also clear that many women with this condition still go on to have normal, uneventful pregnancies.

"A woman should be concerned with thyroid autoimmunity as a potential cause of an underlying immune causation of her miscarriage only if other causes of miscarriage have been thoroughly ruled out," he says. "These include poor egg quality, male factor, genetic factors or uterine factors."

What does this mean for women who may be undergoing artificial reproductive therapy (ART)? Most importantly, it gives reproductive endocrinologists one more tool to find out why a woman is having difficulty carrying a baby to term.

If you've had multiple miscarriages with no apparent cause, it may be time to ask if your blood work has been checked for thyroid autoimmunity. "A work-up for miscarriages should certainly include the immune issues in addition to the many other potential causes of miscarriages," says Dr. Gelman. "Antibodies can be tested as part of a pregnancy loss panel."

Currently, there are as many unanswered questions concerning the miscarriage/thyroid autoimmunity connection as there are answers. For instance, why are some women with thyroid autoimmunity issues able to carry their infant to term while others with the same issue can't? And if you do test positive for this condition, is there anything that can be done about it? Dr. Gelman says there are no treatments specifically for these antibodies.

Dr. Poppe believes that while the current findings help conclude that thyroid antibodies should be assessed in women before reproductive therapy is undertaken, more studies need to be done to answer all the questions the study raises.

This little bit of information might not provide you with the definitive solution you were hoping for, but it could put you on the right track to knowing what is happening with your body. The more information you have, the better able you are to make decisions for your reproductive future.

Want to see more?

• Pregnancy After Loss: Are You Ready to Try Again?
• You've Had a Miscarriage: What Now?
• When a Miscarriage Isn't Nature's Way
• Talk about it!