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A drug commonly prescribed to pregnant women with an inheritable blood clotting condition and a history of recurrent miscarriage does not help to reduce their miscarriage risk, new research has found.
Researchers are advising doctors to stop offering the blood thinner Low Molecular Weight Heparin (heparin) to patients with inherited thrombophilia.
The condition results in blood having an increased tendency to form clots in veins and arteries.
Researchers suggest that stopping screening for inherited thrombophilia and ending the use of heparin as a treatment for these patients could save the NHS around £20m per year.
They also argue that continuing to offer the medication offers false hope of it potentially being a preventative treatment.
A new study funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and published in The Lancet indicates that a daily injection of heparin does not improve the chance of a live birth for patients who have previously had two or more miscarriages and confirmed inherited thrombophilia.
It is estimated that this would affect around 50,000 couples per year in the UK.
Siobhan Quenby, professor of obstetrics at the University of Warwick said: “Patients and doctors will always value knowing about any factor which could be associated with recurrent miscarriage, but the association between inherited thrombophilia and recurrent miscarriage isn’t proven: a recent review of research showed that thrombophilia is as common in the general population as it is in patients with recurrent miscarriage.
“Around the world many of those who suffer with recurrent miscarriage are tested for inherited thrombophilia and are treated with heparin daily.”
Ms Quenby, who is also deputy director of the Tommy’s National Centre for Miscarriage Research, added: “Research now shows that this screening is not needed, the treatment isn’t effective, and it is giving false hope to many by continuing to offer it as a…
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