The aim was to describe midwives' and nurses' experiences when women are diagnosed with a missed miscarriage during a routine ultrasound scan in pregnancy weeks 18 20.
To our knowledge, this study is the first local study that evaluated routine histopathological examination after first-trimester miscarriage.
The existing evidence indicates an opportunity for quality improvement in situations where potential sensitizing events are not at routine times in pregnancy, such as miscarriage or fetal demise early in pregnancy.
The main rationale of routine histopathologic examination of products after first-trimester miscarriages is to detect an ectopic pregnancy or a molar pregnancy, which require further management.
An additional dose of anti-D Ig on top of routine anti-D prophylaxis is advised after a miscarriage (>10 weeks of completed gestation), after termination of pregnancy and after invasive procedures or external version during pregnancy.
Poland already has some of the most restrictive reproductive laws in Europe, and many worry new laws might serve to criminalize women and their doctors, leading to miscarriages being investigated by the police and routine procedures like caesareans not being carried out for fear that the fetus might die.
By contrast, others have recommended against routine histopathological examination of tissues obtained from first-trimester miscarriage.
As there is no agreement, we aimed to study whether routine histopathological examination of tissues obtained after first-trimester miscarriage is of any clinical value in our populations.
The practice of routine histopathologic evaluation of tissue obtained at the time of miscarriage has been the subject of debate.
Amniocentesis/CVS cannot be recommended as a routine procedure in the management of pregnant women with GCK mutations, as the 1% miscarriage rate is unacceptably high and outweighs the potential benefits of knowing fetal GCK genotype.
Critics say that even a woman who suffers a miscarriage could be under criminal suspicion, and that doctors might be put off conducting routine procedures on pregnant women for fear of being accused of facilitating a termination.
