A new study has found that placenta abnormalities could be the reason for miscarriages. In the United States, there are approximately 5 million pregnancies per year with 1 million ending in a miscarriage and over 20,000 ending in stillbirth, according to a paper published in the journal Reproductive Sciences. “To have a pregnancy loss is a tragedy. To be told there is no explanation adds tremendous pain for these loss families,” said senior author of the paper and research scientist at Yale School of Medicine, Dr Harvey Kliman “Our goal was to expand the current classification systems to decrease the number of cases that remained unspecified.” For the study, researchers worked to create a classification system for miscarriages based on a test that examines a sample of the body’s tissues – known as pathologic examination. The team looked at a series of 1,527 single-child pregnancies that ended in miscarriage, and the data was then sent to Yale for evaluation. After excluding cases without adequate material for examination, 1,256 placentas from 922 patients were examined. Of these, 70 per cent were miscarriages and 30 per cent were stillbirths. By adding the explicit categories of “placenta with abnormal development” (dysmorphic placentas) and “small placenta” (a placenta less than the 10th percentile for gestational age) to other incidents such as cord accident, abruption, thrombotic, and infection – researchers were able to determine the results of 91.6 per cent of the pregnancies, including 88.5 per cent of the miscarriages and 98.7 per cent of the stillbirths. The most common results for unexplained miscarriages were dysmorphic placentas (placenta with abnormal development) which was around 86.2 per cent. For stillbirths, there was 33.9 per cent due to a small placenta. “This work suggests that the over 7,000 small placentas per year associated with stillbirths could have been detected in utero — flagging those pregnancies as high risk prior to the loss,” said Dr Kliman. “Likewise, the identification of dysmorphic placentas may be one way to potentially identify genetic abnormalities in the almost 1 million miscarriages that occur in our country every year.” He said having a definite explanation “for a pregnancy loss helps the family understand that their loss was not their fault, allows them to start the healing process, and, when possible, prevent similar losses — especially stillbirths — from occurring in the future.” When asked what the most effective way might be to prevent stillbirths, Dr Kliman responded, “Measure the placenta!” Read More 'Please, keep beating little heart': Man gives raw account of wife's miscarriage and fears for new unborn child Woman who had six miscarriages celebrates pregnancy with rainbow baby photoshoot Miscarriage: The loneliest grief of all Nearly a fifth of parents fear children will ignore health issues while at university Brits feel their mental health declining due to cost of living crisis How often should you wash your pyjamas?

This incident adds to a series of health problems and injuries that Travis Barker has faced in recent months

Hunter Biden is due back in a Delaware courtroom

A first-generation iPhone sold at auction Sunday for $190,373, roughly 380 times its original price of $499 when it went for sale in 2007

A federal magistrate judge has ruled that a man charged with attacking a flight attendant with a broken metal spoon and attempting to open an airliner’s emergency door on a cross-country flight in March is not currently competent to stand trial

Advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday backed the safety and effectiveness of Pfizer Inc's

The operator of Prestige Limousine faces 15 years in prison for failing to safety maintain the limo.

Two prominent Texas attorneys with a long list of famous clients will present the case for impeachment against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton

The Army officer tapped to be the service’s next chief of staff is outlining his plan to fix what he described as the service’s top challenge — rebuilding recruiting — as it becomes clear the Army will again fall short of its enlistment goal

A number of Game of Thrones cast members have struggled in recent years

Manchester United's hopes of a first Premier League title for a decade have been dented just a week into the new campaign by an...

Former US president Donald Trump faced a furious backlash Monday over Veteran's Day weekend remarks branding his political opponents "vermin," as leading scholars and President Joe Biden accused...