Miscarriage effects last for years

The trauma of miscarriage can last for years after the event even after a subsequent healthy birth. Dr Emma Robertson Blackmore of Rochester University in New York State used information from 13,000 women in the Bristol area compiled as part of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children; the women were all pregnant in 1991 and 1992. The 2,800 women who had suffered a miscarriage or stillbirth were much more likely to be depressed and anxious during their next pregnancy and for up to three years afterwards. Up to a fifth of pregnancies end in miscarriage while 0.5% result in stillbirth.