Supportive care for women with unexplained recurrent miscarriage: patients' perspectives

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Medicine
• Women's Health
• Patient-Centered Care

Background:

• Unexplained recurrent miscarriage (RM) lacks specific therapies, with supportive care being the primary option.
• Patient preferences for supportive care during subsequent pregnancies after RM are not well-documented.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore and identify the preferred supportive care options for women experiencing unexplained recurrent miscarriage (RM) during their next pregnancy.

Main Methods:

• Explorative, semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 15 women actively seeking conception after unexplained RM.
• Interviews were transcribed, and data were independently categorized by two researchers to identify supportive care preferences.

Main Results:

• Women identified 20 supportive care options, with 16 being preferred for future pregnancies.
• Preferred options included frequent ultrasounds, βHCG monitoring, lifestyle/diet advice, counseling, clear policies, and medication.
• Less preferred options were hospitalization at previous miscarriage gestational ages, CAM, very frequent ultrasounds, and GP care.

Conclusions:

• This study highlights key supportive care preferences of women with unexplained RM.
• Many identified preferences, such as enhanced monitoring and counseling, can be integrated into gynecological care.
• Implementing these patient-centered preferences can improve the quality of care for women with recurrent miscarriage.