Abortion, Cramps And Passed A Piece Of Flesh. Taking Contraceptive Injection. What Can Be The Bleeding About?

Posted on Wed, 3 Oct 2012

Question: Hi. Im 29 years old and had an abortion on the 20th of feb. After the abortion i was given the contraceptive injection which stopped my periods. I was having regular sex while on the injection the last time being 4 weeks before the injection ran out. I was due my second shot in may but decided not to bother as i wanted to get my body back to normal as i had also been on the pill prior to the abortion. I began bleeding the moment the second injection would have been due. It lasted a day then stopped. A week later i bled again (only for a Day) and then started to bleed every few days sometimes heavy with clotting and sometimes just spotting. I am very bloated most of the time and always cramp just before i bleed. My worry is that yesterday morning i bled (lightly) but the cramps were really bad and then i passed a large peice of flesh. The cramps have stopped but im worried about what it was please help....

Answered by Dr. Kulsoom Qureshi (1 hour later)

Hi XXXXXXX,
Thanks for consulting us.
This large piece could be a retained blood clot or a miscarriage. However it may also represent a uterine pathology like a polyp or a fibroid.
I suggest you should take a pregnancy test & also go for a pelvic ultrasound scan to rule out any disease of your reproductive tract.
If you have ruled out pregnancy & scan comes normal & your irregular bleeding persists then you should see a Gynecologist. She/He may prescribe you medicine to regulate your periods.
Please write back if you have any further question.
Hope you get well soon.
Warm Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Kulsoom Qureshi (3 hours later)

hi thankyou for responding. I last had sex 8 weeks ago while still covered by the injection. I then did a pregnancy test 4 weeks ago which came back negative. What is the likelyhood of pregnancy?

Answered by Dr. Kulsoom Qureshi (19 hours later)

Hi,
Thanks for your question.
Injections are a very effective method of birth control but still they are not 100% effective.
Chances of pregnancy in your case are very low I would say less than 1 % but your history of irregular bleeding forced me to recommend you the fore mentioned investigations.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any other question.
Best Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar