New thoughts in exploring the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of threatened abortion

Abstract

Threatened abortion is a common complication of pregnancy. Since the underlying mechanisms behind this condition are complicated, predicting and treating threatened abortion is a challenge for clinicians. Interestingly, a recent article in Bioscience Trends (Biosci Trends 2019; DOI: 10.5582/bst.2019.01111) revealed a higher, not lower, level of β-human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and estrogen during the first 6 weeks of pregnancy, suggesting a novel association between β-hCG, estrogen, and threatened abortion. Unfortunately, this study was limited by its small sample size, unconvincing trial design, and inadequate exploration of the underlying mechanisms. This low-quality evidence indicates that a higher level of β- hCG and estrogen is associated with threatened abortion. However, that work provided some new insights for further studies of threatened abortion.