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[Experience of ectopic pregnancy]

A Bachelot1, H Fernandez, N Job-Spira

  • 1Unité de recherche INSERM U292, Hôpital de Bicêtre, Le Kremlin-Bicètre.

Contraception, Fertilite, Sexualite (1992)
|July 1, 1994
PubMed

This survey relates to the experience and the management of women who have received a treatment for an ectopic pregnancy. It is based on 31 clinical interviews, conducted a month after the end of surgical or medical treatment. Among these women, 42% had had previous treatment for sterility. The main results show that 16% had never previously heard of ectopic pregnancy, and 29% do not see any reason why they had had one. For the patients, the diagnosis had not been made early enough: 45% feel that the consequences could have been serious if they had not taken the matter seriously themselves. Women clearly express some strong feeling against the health professionals (74%) who were responsible for their medical care, in spite of the attention they received, which reveals the psychological trauma they suffered. Although 55% of women felt depressed, for some of them the ectopic pregnancy seemed to operate as an exorcism from a previous more serious situation. They place their hope in a future pregnancy under close medical supervision. When it appears necessary, psychological support should be offered to these patients.

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