- Sadbhavna Medical & Heart Institute
Patiala
Selective Fetal Reduction
What Is It?
It is a procedure used to reduce the number of fetuses in a multiple pregnancy, usually to two.
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When Is It Indicated?
The goal is to increase the chances of a safe and successful pregnancy. It is usually done at 10-11 weeks, to reduce triplets to twins.
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What can the patient expect?
The most common method of fetal reduction is trans-abdominal. For this procedure, the doctor uses ultrasound as a guide and inserts a needle through the woman's abdomen and into the uterus to the selected fetus through a biopsy guide. The doctor injects the fetus with a potassium chloride solution, which stops the fetal heart. Stay in the hospital is usually 4-6 hours.
Because it is very small during the first trimester, the dead fetus is usually absorbed by the mother's body.Sometimes, this procedure can lead to miscarriage of the remaining fetuses, preterm labour, or infection.