Risk Factors for Ectopic Pregnancy in Planned Pregnancy
Mississippi State University
Taquasia Hicks

An ectopic pregnancy occurs when an embryo embeds elsewhere other than the uterus. Ectopic pregnancies are the most prominent cause of death during the first trimester of pregnancy. Ectopic pregnancies only occur in about 1%-2% of naturally conceived pregnancies. However, in the past 10 years the occurrence of ectopic pregnancies has risen in many countries. Studies show that some contraceptive methods such as birth control pills and intrauterine devices could increase the risk of an ectopic pregnancy. There are many risk associated with ectopic pregnancies in women who had planned pregnancies (Li, Meng, Zhao, Lu, Shi & Zhang, 2014). The method was administered from September 2010 until April 2013. Ectopic pregnancies are diagnosed by a variety of test. The test mostly utilized is transvaginal ultrasonography. All women who were diagnosed with an ectopic pregnancy at the prenatal health care center were asked if the pregnancy was planned. Women who had planned pregnancies were put into the case group. In addition, women who had intrauterine pregnancies were used as the control group. An investigator, blind to the study, was responsible for the questionnaire given to the participants. The investigator also filled out the questionnaire during the interview to ensure a high completion rate. The questionnaire collected information such as history of infertility, contraceptive use, surgical history, sociodemographic characteristics, reproductive history, and gynecologic history (Li et al. 2014, p.177-178). Blood was taken from the participants to detect serum CT IgG antibodies. Data was analyzed through The Statistical Analysis System Software. The Cochran-Armitage test was used to study the difference between the control group and the case group (Li et al. 2014, p.178). The method used is case study because the study compared individual who have ectopic pregnancies to people who have normal pregnancies. Afterwards, the results will reveal the different risk factors for ectopic pregnancies. The results presented many factors that contributed to ectopic pregnancies among planned pregnancies. The total number of women interviewed with ectopic pregnancies was 2,416. 915 of the women previously mention had planned pregnancies. 912 participants with planned intrauterine pregnancies were used as the control group. However, some women later withdrew from the study or were excluded due to false information. The study’s total participants consisted of 900 ectopic pregnancies and 889 intrauterine pregnancies. In addition, all the participants had pregnancies that were planned. The response rate for the study was 97.9%. The study showed that women with lower annual income, lower educational level, and unemployed were at a greater risk to have ectopic pregnancies. Tobacco exposure showed a big impact on the risk of ectopic pregnancies. Previous factors such as ectopic pregnancies, appendectomy, and history of abortion are more likely to result in an ectopic pregnancy when compared to other pregnancies without these factors (Li et al. 2014, p.179). Li (2014) explain some additional findings:
Notably, from among 164 cases and 20 controls with previous EP, 53.05% (87/ 164) of cases and 45.00% (9/20) of the controls received unilateral salpingectomy, and 14.63% of the (24/164) cases and 10.00% (2/20) of the controls received salpingostomy. Furthermore, from among a total of 274 women in both groups with adnexal surgical therapy, 32.35% (77/238) of the cases and 25.00% (9/36) of the controls were treated for infertility. (p.179)
The results determined that condom use could be a protective factor for ectopic pregnancies. However, intrauterine device (IUD) increases the risk of ectopic pregnancies. The study’s trend test showed a significant association between ectopic risk and the duration of IUD use. More