Background: Recurrent miscarriage is defined as the loss of three or more pregnancies. Recurrent Pregnancy Loss (RPL) is traditionally investigated after three or more consecutive losses. Although some believe that the investigation must be launched after two miscarriages, there is not enough compelling evidence to draw conclusion.
Methods : In this cross-sectional study, we studied 58 women with two or more consecutive abortions (37 women with two and 21 women with three or more miscarriages) from 2005 to 2009. The following risk factors were analyzed and compared between the two groups: endocrine dysfunctions, genetic abnormalities, uterine anomalies, infections, thrombophilia, polycystic ovary syndrome, autoimmune disorders, sperm characteristics, and advanced maternal age.
Results : We did not find any known factor for pregnancy losses in 18 (31.03%) patients but in the rest, the most common cause of Recurrent pregnancy loss was endocrine disorders (41.4%). The other causes were uterine abnormalities (12.1%), infections (12.1%), maternal age more than 35 years (12.1%), thrombophilia (8.6%), abnormal semen analysis (8.6%), genetic defects (6.9%) and autoimmune disorders (1.7%). There were no significant differences between the two groups in regards with the causes of abortion except uterine abnormality (P=0.039) which was more frequent in women with three or more three miscarriages (23.8%) relative to women with two abortions (5.4%).
Conclusion: There were no significant differences between women with two or women with three or more three abortions in regards with the causes of abortion except uterine anomalies. Therefore, it seems quite reasonable and perhaps beneficial to start the investigation in patients with two abortions.