Progesterone has little to no effect on miscarriages, so confirms a new study.
New study into hormonal therapy efficient unearthed a couple of contradictory results. According to the paper, published in the New England’s Journal of Medicine, hormone therapy doesn’t prevent miscarriage.
The study itself addressed the use of progesterone, a hormone used in preventing first trimester miscarriage. Outlining the study, its lead author, Doctor Arri Coomarasamy, a professor of gynecology, stressed out that the hormonal supplement is taken by women who had several miscarriages during their life time.
Amassing quite an impressive representative of 826 women in this outstanding clinical trial, the doctor and his researching team were keen on demonstrating that, in terms of statistics, progesterone contribution to preventing miscarriages was insignificant. The subjects were randomly chosen from the clinic. A part of them received vaginal progesterone supplements, while the other half received inactive placebo.
The initial result pointed out that difference in outcome, between women who have taken progesterone and women who have taken plain placebos, was very small. The study’s centered on measuring the birth rate for each study group. Hence, the patients who have received vaginal progesterone had a rate of 65.8 percent, while the other group, that used inactive placebos, had a birth rate of 63.3 percent.
Coomarasamy declared that, with the study’s final result, ends a 60-year debate on whether progesterone could actually prevent first trimester miscarriages or not. A miscarriage state is declared when the fetus dies in the uterus in the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. Usually, approximately 10 to 15 percent of all pregnancies can end up this way. Also, almost 1 percent of expecting mothers can experience a miscarriage during their life time.
Although Coomarasamy stressed out the fact that progesterone therapy could ultimately prove to be futile, another doctor, working for March of Dimes, is not yet keen on dismissing this kind of therapy. Doctor Edward McCabe declared that the issue focuses on just a few aspects of the issue. He said that the matter lies in how the actual hormonal supplement is administrated. Clinical trials suggested that progesterone could ultimately prove to be an effective weapon against miscarriages if the clinician chose another method of administration. McCabe said that he has seen some improvement when the progesterone was taken orally or intramuscularly.
Another issue, still opened for debates, is centered on the actual time of administration. The same doctor, from March of Dimes, said that the treatment would yield better results if it is given before conception or after the conception.
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