Dear jPuttock88,
I am so sorry to hear of your ectopic pregnancy and loss and just wanted you to know that I am thinking of you today.
I too have a huge needle phobia and had the methotraxate injection as treatment for my ectopic pregnancy.
I informed the nurse of my fear and she was so good that I didn’t see a thing.
In terms of treatment options do chat through these with your Dr.
I am not medically trained so cannot give you specific advice on methotraxate but this is some general information from our website.
Methotraxate has been developed to avoid surgery. However, it does require careful monitoring and follow-up. This means that you will have to attend the hospital regularly for blood tests to monitor your hCG levels until the tests are negative. This can take several weeks and this will be explained by your doctor. Your hospital will make arrangements for you to have the hormone level checked. Your doctors will usually test your hCG levels on the day the medicine is given, again on day four, and on day seven after the injections.
The hCG level often rises on the day four blood test because the action of Methotrexate is not instantaneous, so the cells will have continued to divide for two or three days after the injection was given, and some cells release more hCG when they start to disappear. Your doctors are looking to see a drop in your hCG value of at least 15% between days four and seven. If there has not been a 15% drop, this is when the doctors will consider a second dose of Methotrexate or surgery.
A few days after the injection, it is usual to begin to bleed and this bleeding can last between a few days and up to 6 weeks.
Every 3-7 days, beta hCG levels will continue to be monitored to ensure that they are falling appropriately. Most women only need one injection but in up to a quarter of cases a further injection may be required if serum hCG levels are not decreasing.
Methotrexate is at least as good as surgery in terms of subsequent successful pregnancies. This may be due to the fact that medical treatment is non-invasive, whereas surgery may cause some scarring around the tube.
Side effects include abdominal cramping, vaginal bleeding or spotting, nausea, vomiting, and indigestion,
light-headedness or dizziness and I was completely shocked by how utterly exhausted I felt following the injection. I am also fairhaired was warned it can cause skin sensitivity to sunlight as I like you, had my injection in the summer months.
I completely understand how you feel about being scared that something is missed or that something will go wrong but please discuss all of your fears and concerns with your medical team. If you do have the methotraxate injection, you will be given carefully follow up and monitoring and we of course will be hear for you every step of the way should you need us.
Sending much love and warm hugs,
Karen x
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Further information is available at www.ectopic.org.uk
Email us at ept@ectopic.org.uk.
Our helpline is 020 7733 2653 (available Monday to Friday 10am - 4pm).
Detailed medical information can be found on our website. Please remember online medical information is NO SUBSTITUTE for expert medical advice from your own health care team.