Do you know the cause of your baby's death?

[sunflowersmom]

I found this article saying that most stillbirths, they can find the cause of death. They don't know for sure with mine. They think it might have been a cord accident. I was wondering if any of you found out...

healthland.time.com/2011/12/14/stillbirth-study-finds-in-most-cases-a-cause-can-be-found/

[candjlytle]

The hospital advised us to have an autopsy done on my baby but he couldn't find a cause of death. My dr gave us a few possibilites at first, but then took them back. So no, we tried to find answers but the cause of death is still undetermined.

[haskell77]

I was asked if I wanted an autopsy done on my son,, however I couldn't bear the thought of them doing that to his innocent body. However I was told that he had a big bowl movement and that he ate the merconium. I will never really know

[marianne]

I wonder where the jornalist got there information. Its seems a well researched story. Just because a doctor think he has found an abdormality doesnt mean the still born is explained; after all, some babies are born perfectly healthy with less than ideal placentes etc.

[momofthreeplus1]

The cord was wrapped around my Rachel 4 times. It appeared that when she moved her arm, she pinched off the cord.

[ama01]

No answers here. We declined an autopsy as it just was too hard to imagine. But they did take a tissue sample to do chromesome testing. Unfortunately that didn't "grow out" in the lab so the result was inconclusive (bsaically couldn't be done). The placenta, cord and all of my blood work was normal. The dr ASSUMED it must have been a chromesome issue, basically because there was no other answer, but I don't believe that now because I got pregnant again this year and lost my seceond angel at 16+ weeks. No answers again. Very frusterating. Since my loss I've helpeed start an organization that provides support to families who've experienced a loss and I know a lot of people who have been through this... I find it hard to believe that "most" stillbirths can be explained. The stats I've heard in the past are that more than 50% are unexplained, and that fits with the people I know. Even those of "might" have an answer, many still aren't sure.

[sunflowersmom]

Yes, as Marianne said: I wonder where they did get their information. Seems like when you talk to real mothers who've had stillbirths, most of us don't have a definite underlying cause of death.

I'm so sorry for all of your losses. Thanks for sharing with me.

[hugabyesmummy]

i know this thread was started a while ago, but i dont get to come here often.
My baby girls cause was a true knott in her cord, when i delivered her the midwife said we can see why your baby girl died, her cord was healthy and normal until the middle where you could see a very tight knott in it, it amazes me on how tight this was, they belive that she had tugged on this with movements, i recall during my pregnancy she did a full summersault in my tummy and they said the knott may have been created then and then tugged on to make it tight slowly cutting of my babies supply.......

[flora]

We decided to have the autopsy but everything came back normal. They said she was perfectly healthy and they didn't know the cause. When she was born the doctor said that it looked to him that maybe her cord got pinched but didn't know for sure just said there was a part of her cord that looked off. I don't know if that checked it or not.

[tara]

We had an autopsy done on our Sydney but her results came back normal. Doctors have no idea what caused her death.

[mhj]

I delivered a perfect from head to toe baby boy, Tanner on Feb 27th, the same day as my 38 week appointment. No answers were given, no medical reason his heart had just stopped.

[nellila]

Ashley was born alive at 21 weeks. She lived for 2 1/2 hours. Her pathology report came back normal with no infections or defects. The autopsy of the placenta though revealed that it was a placental abruption that caused the preterm labor. My abruption was ruled by the doctor's as an act of nature because I had none of the known causes for an abruption.
deathofababycopedealandheal.blogspot.com/

[Tonya]

I never had an autospy done but the doc thought it was because of my high blood pressure/ preclampsia? It doesnt matter to me but it still hurts that i lost a child!

[emttori]

We did have an autopsy and I was heartbroken to have agreed to one. But they said it could have been an abnormality of the heart or something that my girls could have also. So I agreed. There was no cause of death based on the autopsy, blood work, cord evaluation etc. They did state that 50% of cases go undiagnosed so I was not surprised to hear that my son's cause of death was also unknown.