missed abortion [OE, missan, to be lacking; L, ab, away from, oriri, to be born] , a condition in which a dead immature embryo or fetus is not expelled from the uterus for 2 months or more. The uterus diminishes in size, and symptoms of pregnancy abate; maternal infection and blood clotting disorders may follow. The fetus and placenta may become necrotic; less commonly the fetus becomes calcified, and the rest of the products of conception are resorbed.
