Hi my name is Lisa. I had a miscarriage June 2003. It was my first pregnancy and my husband and I were devastated. To our surprise I found out I was pregnant again in September 2003. We were nervous but very excited. At 8 weeks I got up from a sitting position and felt a pop and a gush. When I looked down, my shorts were covered with blood. My husband rushed me to the hospital. We weren't expecting to see a baby after all the blood I lost but there on the ultrasound was the baby. I was diagnosed with a 3 cm subchorionic hematoma. I was put on bed rest and told to follow up with my doctor. My doctor didn't have much information for me regarding the hematoma. All they could say was that there was nothing they could do.

At 12 weeks the exact same thing happened again. Again we weren't expecting to see a baby when we got to the hospital, but the baby was still there growing doing fine. At this time the hematoma measured 14 cm, extremely large. I was continued on bed rest but my Ob said again there was nothing they could do.

At 16 weeks I requested to go see a perinatologist. This was the best decision. The perinatologists explained everything to us. He gave us the facts, which the regular Ob couldn't because of lack of information. He explained what a subchorionic hematoma was. We were given a 70% chance of miscarriage. The perinatologists continued me on bedrest, performed a lot of blood work and prescribed some vitamins. He did extensive u/s at each visit to check the health of the baby. I continued to bleed and I started to have contractions at 18 weeks. We were told again by my regular Ob that there was nothing they could do. I had contractions off and on from this time on. The hematoma became smaller and the bleeding stopped at 24 weeks.

At 29 weeks I started to have contractions that were more than six an hour and was admitted to the hospital for preterm labor. The contractions at one point were two minutes apart but we were treated successfully with mag sulfate. One week after that I was treated with just brethine. Then another week after that I was treated with just brethine two more times. The baby was oblivious to the hematoma and the contractions. He was growing with no problems. The contractions stopped around 35 weeks. The hematoma was about 5 cm at this time with no active bleeding.

On 4-26-03, at 37 weeks, I went into labor and delivered a healthy 8 lb 9 oz baby boy via c-section (the specialist suggested delivery this way because a subchorionic hematoma may make the placenta separate prematurely). All I can say is that it was an extremely rough pregnancy. It was difficult not knowing what would happen. I was in bed for 7 months but it was well worth it. Your site was the only site I could find information on this condition. I hope that my story gives others hope. I know how scary it can be. Each day you don't know what's going to happen. I suggest that everyone with this condition see a perinatologist. It helped us get through. They do extensive u/s at each visit. It helps to see the baby and to know they keep track of every area of the baby's growth and development and mine.

Thanks,

~ Lisa