Hidden Dangers of Miscarriages Scar Would-Be Moms

Meghan Tyrell thought she was just having a heavy period. But by the time she got to the hospital, she was having a miscarriage and fighting for her life.

“I didn’t even know I was pregnant,” said Tyrell, 26 and a third-grade teacher from Long Island. “I was hemorrhaging.”

Miscarriage, the loss of a pregnancy before 20 weeks, is a common event, occurring in an estimated 15 percent of all pregnancies, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

But it also can be deadly, according to medical experts, and the grief is two-fold, worrying about the loss of an unborn child and the mother. And for those who survive a dangerous miscarriage, there can be untold complications afterward, including infertility.

“I was close to sepsis and if I hadn’t gone to the hospital, I would have bled to death,” Tyrell told NBC News.

Courtesy of Carrie Burdie

Carrie Burdie says complications following her miscarriage have left her unable to get pregnant.

Tyrell had polycystic ovary syndrome, a common endocrine system disorder among women of reproductive age. When a cyst burst, doctors had trouble controlling the bleeding. She had two blood transfusions and four blood vessels in the uterus cauterized.

In Tyrell’s case, the 2010 miscarriage resulted in infertility. Doctors said she has less than 1 percent chance of getting pregnant again — even with in vitro fertilization.

“Losing a pregnancy, whether you are going through infertility or not, is devastating,” said Barbara Collura, president and CEO of RESOLVE, The National Infertility Association.

“And if that miscarriage has complications, you are now faced with the fear of getting pregnant again,” she told NBC News. “It’s a terrible place to be and the emotional toll can result in women experiencing depression."

Life-threatening conditions associated with miscarriage are not rare, according to Dr Katharine Wenstrom, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Brown University and a maternal-fetal specialist at its Women and Infants Hospital.

“Infection was very common before Roe v Wade when women had illegal abortions, but it still happens today when a woman doesn’t realize the pregnancy is over. Infection can become system-wide and affect all the tissues,”