Many women of reproductive age observe blood spots other than the usual monthly periods at least once, and sometimes frequently, in their lifetime. This is clinically known as spotting. Most of the time it is normal. But sometimes, it is associated with serious medical conditions. But the fear factor associated with spotting is higher when it occurs during a woman’s pregnancy.

Women who are pregnant sometimes observe spotting or vaginal bleeding during pregnancy. This may be normal in some cases, but nevertheless requires immediate attention. Read on to learn all you need to know about spotting during pregnancy.

What is spotting?

Spotting is a lighter version of the monthly bleeding in a woman. Most of the time you don’t need to wear any sanitary napkins or tampons to control the blood flow as it is minimal. Most of the time, it is unnoticed or noticed only when you are going to use the washroom. You might just find a few drops of blood in your underwear if you are spotting. Spotting happens in women before and after periods and stays for few days, and that is quite natural. But if it is going on in between the menstrual cycle, or if you observe irregularity in your periods with spotting/heavy spotting, then you must consult a doctor immediately.

How is it different from monthly bleeding?

The flow of the blood in monthly bleeding is much more than it is in spotting, as spotting is just spots or drops of blood, and not a steady stream of blood, unlike menstrual bleeding. Women can easily distinguish between monthly menstrual bleeding, and spotting issues

Normal Spotting in pregnancy

At least twenty percent of women across the globe have reported that they have faced spotting or lighter vaginal bleeding during the first trimester of their pregnancy. In general, there is no harm in spotting, as it is normal. But when it occurs during pregnancy, it warrants attention; because your menses stop during pregnancy, forcing you to worry about alternate sources of bleeding or spotting. Sometimes, it might be due to premature rupture of membranes, or some internal placental anomalies.

Gynecologists estimate that more than twenty percent of women experience spotting during the first half of their pregnancy, but half of these women didn’t notice it because of very light, almost unnoticeable, bleeding. There are several causes of vaginal bleeding or spotting during pregnancy:

• When the fertilized egg gets attached to the uterine walls, there is vaginal bleeding which every woman undergoes. This is known as implantation bleeding. It occurs around the 4 th week of the pregnancy.
• If there are hormonal changes in the body of the woman, whether pregnant or not, then spotting is normal. Hormonal changes are one of the primary reasons for spotting in most of the women in their reproductive age, irrespective of pregnancy.
• If you continue to have sexual intercourse during the first months of the pregnancy, there are chances of bleeding during pregnancy.
• If there is any infection in the vaginal area, there is a high chance of spotting or bleeding from the vagina.
• If there was an internal medical examination conducted by inserting any object into the vagina, it could lead to bleeding or spotting.

These are the natural causes of spotting or bleeding during pregnancy, which you need not be worried about; but there are certain issues which need to be addressed properly with the right medical care and doctors.

When to worry about spotting during pregnancy?

The situations which should give your cause for concern about spotting during pregnancy are as follows:

• If there is a sub-chorionic hemorrhage, then you can observe vaginal bleeding during the pregnancy, as well as bleeding inside your body around your placenta. If it is not diagnosed at the early stage, then it will be difficult to continue with the pregnancy. Though there are chances of having a healthy pregnancy, yet complications would increase, as will the chances of miscarriage and preterm labor.
• If there is a fertilized egg inside your fallopian tubes, but it never gets attached to the uterus appropriately, then there is dark spotting or bleeding observed in women who are diagnosed to be pregnant; but in reality, they have not conceived.
• If there is a miscarriage, which is not diagnosed yet, it  can lead to vaginal bleeding or spotting, which is accompanied by symptoms like cramps in the abdomen or severe pain.
• Ectopic and Molar pregnancy are other causes which can result in severe spotting during pregnancy. The former is a more life-threatening problem for the woman.

Treatment of spotting during pregnancy

For treating spotting during pregnancy, you need to consult your gynecologist for a better understanding of the underlying cause, and then he or she can offer solutions for the same. Typically, adequate sleep and rest is prescribed, along with limited physical activity and not carrying weight over 10 pounds. An ultrasound scan is done immediately to ascertain the fetal heart rate and other parameters.

If you want to avoid spotting during pregnancy, be vigilant about your health during pregnancy.