WOMEN who suffer repeated miscarriages are more likely to have a family history of heart disease, new research suggests.

Recurrent miscarriages – often defined as the loss of three or more pregnancies in a row – are uncommon and affect about 1% of people trying to conceive.

The exact cause of the condition is unknown, but around three-quarters of women who suffer recurrent miscarriage will go on to deliver a healthy baby in the future.

A new study published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, suggests possible common genetic factors between recurrent miscarriage and coronary artery disease.

Experts analysed data for women going through their first birth (more than 74,000 births) in Scotland between 1992 and 2006.

Whether the women had suffered previous miscarriage, and her parents’ chance of dying from heart disease or being admitted to hospital for it, were taken into account using hospital records.

The study found that women who had suffered two previous miscarriages had parents with a 25% higher chance of suffering heart disease.