My wife gave birth to a dead baby. Is that because we both are cousins?

Question

Hi doctor,

I am married to my cousin, and she is my blood relative. My blood group is B positive, and my wife's is A positive. She gave birth to a dead baby, and it was her first pregnancy. I am deeply concerned if this is because of our relationship.

Please guide me.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

In consanguineous marriage, the chance of spread of autosomal recessive disorder and certain congenital malformations is present.
Hence, both of your CBC (complete blood count) report and HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography) should be done to rule out hemoglobinopathy.
Genetic counseling should be done before conception. After conception, regular clinical checkup and chorionic villus sampling like investigations should be done if needed.
The doctor will take your full family history and will do risk assessment accordingly of getting a genetic disorder. Consult a gynecologist for examination and counseling before next conception.