Ms. Tham, 30 years old, living in Ho Chi Minh City, became pregnant for the first time 4 years ago. At 8 weeks, the pregnancy stopped progressing for unknown reasons. A few months later, she became pregnant again and had a miscarriage at 9 weeks. She and her husband went to the hospital for examination, and it was diagnosed that Tham had the MTHFR gene mutation.
At this time, the doctor advised her and her husband to undergo in vitro fertilization to keep the pregnancy and give birth to a healthy child. However, after two successful embryo transfers, she continued to have an early miscarriage at the 9th and 10th weeks of pregnancy. After a while, she became pregnant naturally for the 5th time and continued to lose her baby at the 5th week of pregnancy. 10. Losing her child 5 times in a row made Ms. Tham mentally depressed.
Regarding her condition, Dr. Le Thanh Hung, Deputy Head of Obstetrics Department, Obstetrics and Gynecology Center, said that Ms. Tham's repeated miscarriages were related to the MTHFR gene mutation, carrying an additional gene mutation on the PAI-1 gene. Carrying MTHFR and PAI-1 gene mutations is associated with a higher risk of miscarriage. However, in some cases women can still have a normal pregnancy.
When testing for genetic diseases related to genotype, mutation or chromosome set, it will help prevent diseases in the next generation.
When this gene is abnormal, pregnant women and their fetuses will have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, neural tube defects, or repeated miscarriages and stillbirths.
MTHFR gene mutations are inherited from a parent who carries this gene. If you are a girl, during pregnancy you are susceptible to damage to the placental blood vessels, causing blood clots to form in the placenta. This leads to blockage of the source of nutrients for the fetus, placenta abruption, miscarriage or stillbirth.
This adverse effect can be counteracted by the use of complementary medications, preventing complications that occur during pregnancy. "Women carrying the MTHFR gene mutation can give birth to healthy children if they comply with the treatment regimen," Dr. Hung added.
To help Ms. Tham have a child, Dr. Thanh Hung used a regimen of supplementing folic acid, vitamin B, and antithrombotic drugs three months before she became pregnant. After that, Ms. Tham easily became pregnant naturally in October 2023.
Dr. Hung added that when using blood thinners, pregnant women also have an increased risk of blood clotting disorders, which can be dangerous if bleeding occurs due to trauma, hemorrhage or ectopic pregnancy rupture. Therefore, doctors recommend that women being treated for this condition not travel or live far from a hospital. Diet needs to be healthy, increasing beneficial foods such as cereals and vitamin-rich fruits; Stay away from cigarette smoke, alcohol, stress... because it can easily negatively affect the fetus.
According to Dr. Hung, multiple miscarriages in a row cause pregnant women to lose faith in themselves and experience mental and physical collapse. Therefore, treatment regimens need to pay attention to the mother's psychology and spirit.
To prevent the disease, doctors recommend that couples experiencing a second or subsequent miscarriage be tested to find the cause. Genetic testing before starting pregnancy can minimize the risks of pregnancy.
