If my breasts suddenly stop swelling, will the fetus stop growing?

In the first three months of pregnancy, it is normal to feel chest pain or distension from time to time, because the breasts are preparing for lactation. However, many mothers suddenly feel that their breasts are no longer swollen. At this time, they will worry about fetal growth retardation. In fact, fetal growth retardation not only includes breast symptoms, but may also manifest as vaginal bleeding, even lower abdominal pain, and miscarriage.

Early diagnosis

symptom

If fetal arrest occurs, the mother's body will undergo a series of changes to facilitate its expulsion. First, the levels of estrogen and progesterone decrease, the body produces an immune rejection effect on the embryo, and blood vessels between the mother and the embryo form blood clots and break off, which may cause vaginal bleeding in the process. We call the bleeding at this time threatened abortion, which is a signal that the embryo is about to be expelled from the body.

This needs to be differentiated from vaginal bleeding during normal embryonic development. If local blood vessels rupture during normal embryonic development, vaginal bleeding may occur. This bleeding will not cause the embryo to be expelled from the body, so it cannot be called threatened abortion.

There will be brief lower abdominal pain during the expulsion of the embryo. Early pregnancy reactions may be alleviated after embryonic arrest, but early pregnancy reactions themselves vary from individual to individual, so early pregnancy reactions cannot be used to judge the development of the embryo. Most pregnant women have no obvious symptoms after the fetus stops developing, and a clear diagnosis is required through hormone testing combined with early pregnancy ultrasound testing.

diagnosis

Patients with a history of amenorrhea should undergo B-ultrasound examination in the early stages of pregnancy, regardless of whether they have spotting or not, to avoid missing the diagnosis of fetal growth retardation. B-ultrasound monitoring of embryo and fetal development: if there is no gestational sac at ≥6 weeks, or if there is a gestational sac but it is deformed and wrinkled, when the gestational sac is ≥4cm but no fetal bud is seen, and when the fetal bud (branch head length) is ≥4~5mm and there is no fetal heartbeat during vaginal ultrasound, it can be determined that the embryo has arrested. In addition, blood β-hcG measurement can also help diagnose fetal growth retardation. If blood β-hcG is <100IU/L at ≥5 weeks, or <2000IU/L at ≥6 weeks, it indicates insufficient secretion of human chorionic gonadotropin. If the value no longer increases during dynamic observation, it can be determined that the chorionic epithelium is degenerating and the embryo is abnormal.

reason

Fetal arrest refers to the cessation of embryo development due to some reason in early pregnancy. Ultrasound examination may show an irregular fetal bud or fetal shape in the gestational sac, no fetal heartbeat, or a withered gestational sac. Clinically, it falls into the category of miscarriage or stillbirth. There are many reasons for fetal growth retardation. More than 90% of them are related to abnormalities of the embryo itself. In a few cases, they are related to luteal insufficiency, hyperprolactinemia, abnormal thyroid function, and diabetes.

Endocrine disorders

Embryo implantation and continued development depend on the coordination of a complex endocrine system. Any abnormality in any link can lead to miscarriage. During the early development of the embryo, three important hormone levels are required: estrogen, progesterone, and human chorionic gonadotropin. As for the mother, if her own endogenous hormones are insufficient, it cannot meet the needs of the embryo and may cause embryo arrest and miscarriage.

The most common of these is luteal dysfunction, which can cause delayed endometrial development and a short luteal phase, thereby affecting the implantation of the fertilized egg or early pregnancy miscarriage. People with luteal insufficiency are often accompanied by other glandular dysfunctions, such as hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism, diabetes, relative androgenism and hyperprolactinemia. These factors are not conducive to embryonic development and are closely related to miscarriage.