APS recurrent miscarriage

[Beepi]

Hello you maybe aware I have had 3 miscarriage in row from my previous comments and been diagnosed with APS syndrome.

Doctors have given me hydroxychloroquine. Do you know if this is steroids? Or do I need steroids aswell for my next pregnancy?

[MaryF Administrator]

Hi, no antimalerials are not steroids, you need to have a thorough chat with your Hughes Syndrome/APS consultant who will guide you with the best treatment options/protocol for your particular case. It is vital that you have somebody who understands this disease fully. Best wishes. MaryF

[Beepi in reply to MaryF]

Thanks for your response.

Hes already put me on hydroxychloroquine and baby asprin daily. But from what I have been reading alot of women are on steroids to, to avoid a miscarriage so I wasnt sure if I need to be on this aswell.

I will be on herapin as soon as I get a BFP but reading story's about Steroids with APS maybe needed x

[MaryF Administrator in reply to Beepi]

Some do indeed have this protocol, please do discuss with your doctor, many thanks. MaryF

[JustLa in reply to Beepi]

Hi Beepi, I just wanted to offer a little support and let you know that I too have had 3 MC’s before discovering I have APS.

I’m definitely not a medical professional, but perhaps can help by giving you some ideas of what to talk to your specialist about.

I think hydroxy is used instead of steroids for some people, depending on their particular combination of issues, and perhaps depending on the specialists preference or beliefs too.

Prednisone is the steroid I’m familiar with and whilst I believe it can help with APS, I would not have been prescribed it had I have not had another condition too. Heparin and low dose aspirin are the most popular (and probably the most effective) in helping to support healthy pregnancies with APS.

You could ask about being put on cyclogest or a similar progesterone supplement too, to help support your womb during pregnancy.

I saw a private specialist and got close monitoring (arterial Doppler scans) throughout pregnancy to ensure the placenta was working efficiently and baby was growing well and am happy to say I’ve now got a wonderful healthy 16 month old boy.

Best of luck on your journey x

[JustLa in reply to JustLa]

*prednisilone* (not prednisone although I think they are very similar)

[Beepi in reply to JustLa]

Thank you so much for your advice. I am seeing a rheumatologist and gynecologists privatly as I want answers now. I'm still pretty devastated about the miscarriages and just want to make sure everything the private doctors are given is correct. Lost bit of trust in my GP now due to being dismissal all the time despite complaining of my symtoms for 3 years inc 3 miscarriages.

Yes my gynecologists said soon as I get a BFP I will need to start Progesterone, claxane Injections.

I am already taking high dose folic acid, hydroxychloroquine twice a day and 150mg asprin.

I pray so much the next time I'll be pregnant all will be ok.

I'm glad to hear your successful story, really gives me some hope x

[Beepi in reply to Beepi]

Oh I dont have any other condition except borderline of ANA. Everything else came back as negative (lupus anticoagulant etc)

[JustLa in reply to Beepi]

I’m sure your next pregnancy will go well, it sounds like you’re doing everything you can and I’m so sorry you’ve been through all this. It’s torturous and terrifying with so many emotions involved.

Some doctors can occasionally be like the difficult receptionist that you need to get past, to see who you really need to! (Although most are incredibly helpful)

You could look into switching from folic acid to folate (I took folic as didn’t know) as it’s apparently more easily absorbed by people with certain conditions (worth researching to see if this applies to you, as afraid I can’t remember which conditions)

Clexane does the same job as heparin, so that’s good x

[Lauren2121 in reply to Beepi]

Please be careful about taking high dose folic acid - you want to make sure it’s methylated or follinic as folic acid can block receptors and cause many challenges with methylation. Dr. Ben Lynch is a great resource on this.

It sounds like you’ve got the right treatment for the ANA. Some people add methylprednisolone (doesn’t cross the placenta, but prednisone does), and of course baby aspirin and lovenox/clexane. A great book for information on reproductive immunology is “is your body baby friendly”. Super helpful! Obviously you’ll need to follow up with your specialist on all this, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my journey with all of this it is: listen to your own intuition and advocate for self as much as you need.

[myarabella]

I used baby aspirin and Lovenox injections during my nearly perfect t pregnancy. This was after miscarrying 3 times and receiving the APS diagnosis. I hope you have the same great results I did. By the way, I was switched to short acting Heparin about 4 weeks before my C-Section. Best of luck to you and a healthy pregnancy and baby.