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Treatment depends on diagnosis and may include hormonal therapy, iv fluids, blood transfusion, and/or a dilation and curettage. Internal bleeding requires laparoscopy or abdominal surgery, in rare and extreme cases a hysterectomy is performed.
Gynecologic hemorrhage needs to be evaluated as soon as possible by a physician. The amount and duration of bleeding will dictate whether a bleeding event is an emergency event.
Treatment may be delivery by caesarean section and abdominal hysterectomy if placenta accreta is diagnosed before birth. Oxytocin and antibiotics are used for post-surgical management. When there is partially separated placenta with focal accreta, best option is removal of placenta. If it is important to save the woman's uterus (for future pregnancies) then resection around the placenta may be successful. Conservative treatment can also be uterus sparing but may not be as successful and has a higher risk of complications.
Techniques include:
- Leaving the placenta in the uterus and curettage of uterus. Methotrexate has been used in this case.
- Intrauterine balloon catheterisation to compress blood vessels
- Embolisation of pelvic vessels
- Internal iliac artery ligation
- Bilateral uterine artery ligation
In cases where there is invasion of placental tissue and blood vessels into the bladder, it is treated in similar manner to abdominal pregnancy and manual placental removal is avoided. However, this may eventually need hysterectomy and/or partial cystectomy.
If the patient decides to proceed with a vaginal delivery, blood products for transfusion and an anesthesiologist are kept ready at delivery.
Severe acute bleeding, such as caused by ectopic pregnancy and post-partum hemorrhage, leads to hypovolemia (the depletion of blood from the circulation), progressing to shock. This is a medical emergency and requires hospital attendance and intravenous fluids, usually followed by blood transfusion. Once the circulating volume has been restored, investigations are performed to identify the source of bleeding and address it. Uncontrolled life-threatening bleeding may require uterine artery embolization (occlusion of the blood vessels supplying the uterus), laparotomy (surgical opening of the abdomen), occasionally leading to hysterectomy (removal of the uterus) as a last resort.
A possible complication from protracted vaginal blood loss is iron deficiency anemia, which can develop insidiously. Eliminating the cause will resolve the anemia, although some women require iron supplements or blood transfusions to improve the anemia.
If someone has coagulopathy, their health care provider may help them manage their symptoms with medications or replacement therapy. In replacement therapy, the reduced or absent clotting factors are replaced with proteins derived from human blood or created in the laboratory. This therapy may be given either to treat bleeding that has already begun or to prevent bleeding from occurring.
One area of treatment is managing people with major bleeding in a critical setting, like an emergency department. In these situations, the common treatment is transfusing a combination of red cells with one of the following options:
- Blood plasma
- Prothrombin complex concentrate, factor XIII, and fibrinogen
- Fibrinogen with tranexamic acid
The use of tranexamic acid is the only option that is currently supported by a large, randomized, controlled clinical trial, and is given to people with major bleeding after trauma. There are several possible risks to treating coagulopathies, such as transfusion-related acute lung injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, major hemorrhage, and venous thromboembolism.
Treatment depends on the amount of blood loss and the status of the fetus. If the fetus is less than 36 weeks and neither mother or fetus is in any distress, then they may simply be monitored in hospital until a change in condition or fetal maturity whichever comes first.
Immediate delivery of the fetus may be indicated if the fetus is mature or if the fetus or mother is in distress. Blood volume replacement to maintain blood pressure and blood plasma replacement to maintain fibrinogen levels may be needed. Vaginal birth is usually preferred over Caesarean section unless there is fetal distress. Caesarean section is contraindicated in cases of disseminated intravascular coagulation. People should be monitored for 7 days for postpartum hemorrhage. Excessive bleeding from uterus may necessitate hysterectomy. The mother may be given Rhogam if she is Rh negative.
The local application of a vasoconstrictive agent has been shown to reduce the bleeding time in benign cases of epistaxis. The drugs oxymetazoline or phenylephrine are widely available in over-the-counter nasal sprays for the treatment of allergic rhinitis, and they may be used for this purpose.
In postmenopausal bleeding, guidelines from the United States consider transvaginal ultrasonography to be an appropriate first-line procedure to identify which women are at higher risk of endometrial cancer. A cut-off threshold of 3 mm or less of endometrial thickness should be used for in women with postmenopausal bleeding in the following cases:
- Not having used hormone replacement therapy for a year or more
- Usage of continuous hormone replacement therapy consisting of both an estrogen and a progestagen
A cut-off threshold of 5 mm or less should be used for women on sequential hormone replacement therapy consisting both of an estrogen and a progestagen.
It the endometrial thickness equals the cut-off threshold or is thinner, and the ultrasonography is otherwise reassuring, no further action need be taken. Further investigations should be carried out if symptoms recur.
If the ultrasonography is not reassuring, hysteroscopy and endometrial biopsy should be performed. The biopsy may be obtained either by curettage at the same time as inpatient or outpatient hysteroscopy, or by using an endometrium sampling device such as a pipelle which can practically be done directly after the ultrasonography.
It is recommended that women with vasa previa should deliver through elective cesarean prior to rupture of the membranes. Given the timing of membrane rupture is difficult to predict, elective cesarean delivery at 35–36 weeks is recommended. This gestational age gives a reasonable balance between the risk of death and that of prematurity. Several authorities have recommended hospital admission about 32 weeks. This is to give the patient proximity to the operating room for emergency delivery should the membranes rupture. Because these patients are at risk for preterm delivery, it is recommended that steroids should be given to promote fetal lung maturation. When bleeding occurs, the patient goes into labor, or if the membranes rupture, immediate treatment with an emergency caesarean delivery is usually indicated.
Therapy involves both preventive measures and treatment of specific bleeding episodes.
- Dental hygiene lessens gingival bleeding
- Avoidance of antiplatelet agents such as aspirin and other anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen and naproxen, and anticoagulants
- Iron or folate supplementation may be necessary if excessive or prolonged bleeding has caused anemia
- Hepatitis B vaccine
- Antifibrinolytic drugs such as tranexamic acid or ε-aminocaproic acid (Amicar)
- Desmopressin (DDAVP) does not normalize the bleeding time in Glanzmann's thrombasthenia but anecdotally improves hemostasis
- Hormonal contraceptives to control excessive menstrual bleeding
- Topical agents such as gelfoam, fibrin sealants, polyethylene glycol polymers, custom dental splints
- Platelet transfusions (only if bleeding is severe; risk of platelet alloimmunization)
- Recombinant factor VIIa, AryoSeven or NovoSeven FDA approved this drug for the treatment of the disease on July 2014.
- Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) for severe recurrent hemorrhages
Early treatment of an ectopic pregnancy with methotrexate is a viable alternative to surgical treatment which was developed in the 1980s. If administered early in the pregnancy, methotrexate terminates the growth of the developing embryo; this may cause an abortion, or the developing embryo may then be either resorbed by the woman's body or pass with a menstrual period. Contraindications include liver, kidney, or blood disease, as well as an ectopic embryonic mass > 3.5 cm.
Also, it may lead to the inadvertent termination of an undetected intrauterine pregnancy, or severe abnormality in any surviving pregnancy. Therefore, it is recommended that methotrexate should only be administered when hCG has been serially monitored with a rise less than 35% over 48 hours, which practically excludes a viable intrauterine pregnancy.
Ideally the management of abdominal pregnancy should be done by a team that has medical personnel from multiple specialties. Potential treatments consist of surgery with termination of the pregnancy (removal of the fetus) via laparoscopy or laparotomy, use of methotrexate, embolization, and combinations of these. Sapuri and Klufio indicate that conservative treatment is also possible if the following criteria are met: 1. there are no major congenital malformations; 2. the fetus is alive; 3. there is continuous hospitalization in a well-equipped and well-staffed maternity unit which has immediate blood transfusion facilities; 4. there is careful monitoring of maternal and fetal well being; and 5. placental implantation is in the lower abdomen away from the liver and spleen. The choice is largely dictated by the clinical situation. Generally, treatment is indicated when the diagnosis is made; however, the situation of the advanced abdominal pregnancy is more complicated.
If these simple measures do not work then medical intervention may be needed to stop bleeding. The use of silver nitrate to cauterize bleeding blood vessels is common but not very useful for those with more than mild bleeding. It is also often painful even when freezing is used.
There are two types of nasal packing, anterior nasal packing and posterior nasal packing. There are a number of different types of anterior nasal packs. Some use gauze and others use balloons. Posterior packing can be achieved by using a Foley catheter, blowing up the balloon when it is in the back of the throat, and applying traction. Ribbon gauze or Merocel packing can also be used. There are also several dissolvable packing materials, such as surgicel that function as a pack but are not removed and dissolve after a few days. Packing is generally left in for two to five days.
Ongoing bleeding despite good nasal packing is a surgical emergency and can be treated by endoscopic evaluation of the nasal cavity under general anaesthesia to identify an elusive bleeding point or to directly ligate (tie off) the blood vessels supplying the nose. These blood vessels include the sphenopalatine, anterior and posterior ethmoidal arteries. More rarely the maxillary or a branch of the external carotid artery can be ligated. The bleeding can also be stopped by intra-arterial embolization using a catheter placed in the groin and threaded up the aorta to the bleeding vessel by an interventional radiologist. There is no difference in outcomes between embolization and ligation as treatment options, but embolization is considerably more expensive. Continued bleeding may be an indication of more serious underlying conditions.
If bleeding has already occurred, surgical intervention may be necessary. However, whether to pursue surgical intervention is an often difficult decision in a stable patient with minimal evidence of blood clot on ultrasound.
Surgeons use laparoscopy or laparotomy to gain access to the pelvis and can either incise the affected Fallopian and remove only the pregnancy (salpingostomy) or remove the affected tube with the pregnancy (salpingectomy). The first successful surgery for an ectopic pregnancy was performed by Robert Lawson Tait in 1883. It is estimated that an acceptable rate of PULs that eventually undergo surgery is between 0.5 and 11%.
Autotransfusion of a woman's own blood as drained during surgery may be useful in those who have a lot of bleeding into their abdomen.
Published reports that a re-implanted embryo survived to birth were debunked as false.
Although the risk of placental abruption cannot be eliminated, it can be reduced. Avoiding tobacco, alcohol and cocaine during pregnancy decreases the risk. Staying away from activities which have a high risk of physical trauma is also important. Women who have high blood pressure or who have had a previous placental abruption and want to conceive must be closely supervised by a doctor.
The risk of placental abruption can be reduced by maintaining a good diet including taking folic acid, regular sleep patterns and correction of pregnancy-induced hypertension.
It is crucial for women to be made aware of the signs of placental abruption, such as vaginal bleeding, and that if they experience such symptoms they must get into contact with their health care provider/the hospital "without any delay".
Treatment of hemosuccus pancreaticus depends on the source of the hemorrhage. If the bleeding is identified on angiography to be coming from a vessel that is small enough to occlude, embolization through angiography may stop the bleeding. Both coils in the end-artery and stents across the area of bleeding have been used to control the hemorrhage. However, the bleeding may be refractory to the embolization, which would necessitate surgery to remove the pancreas at the source of hemorrhage. Also, the cause of bleeding may be too diffuse to be treated with embolization (such as with pancreatitis or with pancreatic cancer). This may also require surgical therapy, and usually a distal pancreatectomy, or removal of the part of the pancreas from the area of bleeding to the tail, is required.
Drug of choice is progesterone.
Management of dysfunctional uterine bleeding predominantly consists of reassurance, though mid-cycle estrogen and late-cycle progestin can be used for mid- and late-cycle bleeding respectively.
Also, non-specific hormonal therapy such as combined high-dose estrogen and high-dose progestin can be given. Ormeloxifene is a non-hormonal medication that treats DUB but is only legally available in India.
The goal of therapy should be to arrest bleeding, replace lost iron to avoid anemia, and prevent future bleeding.
Excessive movement before any treatments or surgeries will cause excessive bleeding.
A hysterectomy may be performed in some cases.
If the anemia is severe, blood transfusion is required before any other intervention is considered. Endoscopic treatment is an initial possibility, where cautery or argon plasma coagulation (APC) treatment is applied through the endoscope. Failing this, angiography and emolization with particles is another microinvasive treatment option, which avoids the need for surgery and bowel resection. Here, the vessel supplying the angiodysplasia is selectively catheterized and embolizaed with microparticles. Resection of the affected part of the bowel may be needed if the other modalities fail. However, the lesions may be widespread, making such treatment impractical.
If the bleeding is from multiple or inaccessible sites, systemic therapy with medication may be necessary. First-line options include the antifibrinolytics tranexamic acid or aminocaproic acid. Estrogens can be used to stop bleeding from angiodysplasia. Estrogens cause mild hypercoaguability of the blood. Estrogen side effects can be dangerous and unpleasant in both sexes. Changes in voice and breast swelling is bothersome in men, but older women often report improvement of libido and perimenopausal symptoms. (The worries about hormone replacement therapy/HRT, however, apply here as well.)
In difficult cases, there have been positive reports about octreotide and thalidomide.
In severe cases or cases not responsive to either endoscopic or medical treatment, surgery may be necessary to arrest the bleeding.
The term «persistent trophoblastic disease» (PTD) is used when after treatment of a molar pregnancy, some molar tissue is left behind and again starts growing into a tumour. Although PTD can spread within the body like a malignant cancer, the overall cure rate is nearly 100%.
In the vast majority of patients, treatment of PTD consist of chemotherapy. Only about 10% of patients with PTD can be treated successfully with a second curettage.
These have been ranked by the UK's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence:
- First line
- Intrauterine device with progesterone
- Second Line
- Tranexamic acid an antifibrinolytic agent
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
- Combined oral contraceptive pills to prevent proliferation of the endometrium
- Third line
- Oral progestogen (e.g. norethisterone), to prevent proliferation of the endometrium
- Injected progestogen (e.g. Depo provera)
- Other options
- Gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist
Treatment is always necessary.
The treatment for hydatidiform mole consists of the evacuation of pregnancy. Evacuation will lead to the relief of symptoms, and also prevent later complications. Suction curettage is the preferred method of evacuation. Hysterectomy is an alternative if no further pregnancies are wished for by the female patient. Hydatidiform mole also has successfully been treated with systemic (intravenous) methotrexate.
The treatment for invasive mole or choriocarcinoma generally is the same. Both are usually treated with chemotherapy. Methotrexate and dactinomycin are among the chemotherapy drugs used in GTD. Only a few women with GTD suffer from poor prognosis metastatic gestational trophoblastic disease. Their treatment usually includes chemotherapy. Radiotherapy can also be given to places where the cancer has spread, e.g. the brain.
Women who undergo chemotherapy are advised not to conceive for one year after completion of treatment. These women also are likely to have an earlier menopause. It has been estimated by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists that the age at menopause for women who receive single agent chemotherapy is advanced by 1 year, and by 3 years for women who receive multi agent chemotherapy.
Aside from the social distress of dealing with a prolonged and heavy period, over time the blood loss may prove to be greater than the body iron reserves or the rate of blood replenishment, leading to anemia. Symptoms attributable to the anemia may include shortness of breath, tiredness, weakness, tingling and numbness in fingers and toes, headaches, depression, becoming cold more easily, and poor concentration.
Advanced abdominal pregnancy refers to situations where the pregnancy continues past 20 weeks of gestation (versus early abdominal pregnancy < 20 weeks). In those situations, live births have been reported in academic journals and also in the lay press where the babies are not uncommonly referred to as 'Miracle babies'. A patient may carry a dead fetus but will not go into labor. Over time, the fetus calcifies and becomes a lithopedion.
It is generally recommended to perform a laparotomy when the diagnosis of an abdominal pregnancy is made. However, if the baby is alive and medical support systems are in place, careful watching could be considered to bring the baby to viability. Women with an abdominal pregnancy will not go into labor. Delivery in a case of an advanced abdominal pregnancy will have to be via laparotomy. The survival of the baby is reduced and high perinatal mortality rates between 40–95% have been reported.
Babies of abdominal pregnancies are prone to birth defects due to compression in the absence of the uterine wall and the often reduced amount of amniotic fluid surrounding the unborn baby. The rate of malformations and deformations is estimated to be about 21%; typical deformations are facial and cranial asymmetries and joint abnormalities and the most common malformations are limb defects and central nervous malformations.
Once the baby has been delivered placental management becomes an issue. In normal deliveries the contraction of uterus provides a powerful mechanism to control blood loss, however, in an abdominal pregnancy the placenta is located over tissue that cannot contract and attempts of its removal may lead to life-threatening blood loss. Thus blood transfusion is frequent in the management of patients with this kind of pregnancy, with others even using tranexamic acid and recombinant factor VIIa, which both minimize blood loss.
Generally, unless the placenta can be easily tied off or removed, it may be preferable to leave it in place and allow for a natural regression. This process may take several months and can be monitored by clinical examination, checking human chorionic gonadotropin levels and by ultrasound scanning (in particular using doppler ultrasonography. Use of methotrexate to accelerate placental regression is controversial as the large amount of necrotic tissue is a potential site for infection, mifepristone has also be used to promote placental regression. Placental vessels have also been blocked by angiographic embolization. Complications of leaving the placenta can include residual bleeding, infection, bowel obstruction, pre-eclampsia (which may all necessitate further surgery) and failure to breast feed due to placental hormones.
Outcome with abdominal pregnancy can be good for the baby and mother, Lampe described an abdominal pregnancy baby and her mother who were well more than 22 years after surgery.
True cervical pregnancies tend to abort; if, however, the pregnancy is located higher in the canal and the placenta finds support in the uterine cavity it can go past the first trimester. With the placenta being implanted abnormally extensive vaginal bleeding can be expected at time of delivery and placental removal. While early cervical pregnancies may abort spontaneously or can be managed with excision, D&C, suturing, electrocautery, and tamponading, by medication such as methotrexate, and/or by uterine artery embolization, a more advanced pregnancy may require a hysterectomy to control bleeding. The more advanced the pregnancy the higher the risk for a major bleeding necessitating a hysterectomy.
On a very rare occasion, a cervical pregnancy results in the birth of a live baby, typically the pregnancy is in the upper part of the cervical canal and manages to extend into the lower part of the uterine cavity.
A cervical pregnancy can develop together with a normal intrauterine pregnancy; such a heterotopic pregnancy will call for expert management as to not to endanger the intrauterine pregnancy.