TITLE:
Recurrent Unperceived Pregnancies and Unbooked Deliveries Presenting in Labor to the Emergency Department: A Case Report
AUTHORS:
Kenji Niwa, Saki Tsurue, Chiaki Kameyama, Kentaro Niwa, Atsuko Naoi, Tomohiro Morishita, Takuji Tanaka
KEYWORDS:
Unperceived Pregnancy, Unbooked Delivery, Recurrent, Reproductive Mental Health
JOURNAL NAME:
Case Reports in Clinical Medicine,
Vol.15 No.8,
August
19,
2026
ABSTRACT: We report the case of a Japanese woman who experienced two episodes of unperceived pregnancy with unbooked delivery, separated by an interval of seven years. At the age of 25 years, she visited the emergency room (ER) unaware of her pregnancy; a computed tomography scan revealed a fetus, confirming the pregnancy, and she subsequently delivered a 2620-g baby boy in the delivery room on the same day (estimated gestational age, 36 weeks 0 days, by biparietal diameter). Seven years later, at the age of 33 years, she again visited the ER by ambulance, still unaware of being pregnant; on arrival, her cervix was fully dilated, and she delivered a 2454-g baby girl in the delivery room (estimated gestational age, 35 weeks 6 days, by the last menstrual period). Both children have since been growing up healthy. She appeared to have several high-risk background factors conducive to unperceived pregnancy, including irregular menstruation, unstable relationships, borderline intellectual functioning, and a somewhat unstable financial situation.