The condition affects up to 6% of all pregnancies yet understanding of its causes and how to treat it remains basic
Having had one normal pregnancy, Emma Bailey assumed that her second experience of childbirth would progress relatively smoothly. But, at 34 weeks, she began to suffer sudden bursts of stabbing pain just underneath her ribcage.
“It was really excruciating pain,” she remembers. “I was admitted to hospital, but they sent me home, saying it was probably just anxiety. I then had to be readmitted the very next day because I was in agony.”
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