Understanding the pathophysiology of threatened miscarriage

Abstract

Introduction: Threatened miscarriage (TM) is defined as a history of vaginal bleeding in early pregnancy in the presence of a closed cervix and with ultrasonic evidence of an intrauterine gestational sac and the confirmation of a fetal heartbeat. TM is the most common complication of ongoing pregnancy, occurring in around 30% of pregnant women, and it is associated with a risk of full miscarriage of 10-14%. The aim of our study was to measure circulating and intracellular levels of T helper-1 (Th-1) and T helper-2 (Th-2) cytokines in women presenting with TM and evaluate their relationship with subsequent miscarriage.