37‑year-old woman's unrelenting bloating and pain shocks doctors with rare ectopic pregnancy

The startling case was revealed by the New England Journal of Medicine. The patient, living on the French island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean, was feeling increasingly worse. Painkillers did not affect her, leading her to the emergency room at the hospital, where she was admitted to a department.

Detailed tests were performed on the 37-year-old. The outcomes not only shocked the patient but also baffled the doctors. "The cause of the distressing symptoms was found to be an ectopic pregnancy, located between the intestine and the stomach. The placenta was situated next to the pelvis," they say.

The woman, in her 23rd week of pregnancy, couldn't have imagined that the cause of her severe bloating and abdominal pain was pregnancy. She did not experience any other typical pregnancy discomforts.

Thankfully, the unborn child was healthy. Therefore, specialists decided to continue with the difficult and unusual pregnancy. The patient was provided consistent professional care at the hospital during this strenuous period. She entered premature labor in the 29th week. Shortly after delivery, the premature newborn was placed in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Twelve days post-delivery, the patient underwent surgery to remove the remnants of the placenta, and over two months later, she was discharged from the hospital with her child. Both mother and baby are doing well, states New England Journal of Medicine.