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Never Say Never
Planning Pregnancy With a Chronic Health Condition By Kelly Burgess
she says. "What I can do is tell them what the known risks are and what, statistically, is the possible outcome. Ultimately it's their decision."
Dr. Dattel strongly urges a pre-conception consult with a doctor who specializes in maternal-fetal medicine. They can determine if medications the woman is currently taking are safe to take in pregnancy, as well as help the woman to achieve and maintain the best possible condition for becoming pregnant, whether that means changing medications or diet, or other lifestyle changes.
An Overview
Dr. Dattel sees a lot of chronic conditions, from mild to severe. While this is by no means comprehensive, here is a general look at some common chronic conditions and how they can respond to pregnancy: - Asthma is one of those conditions that is as apt to get better as it is to get worse. Dr. Dattel says the big challenge is later in the pregnancy when women become short of breath because of increasing girth. In general, people with well-controlled asthma do well during pregnancy.
- Thyroid disease is very common in reproductive women, but some women are not on the best medication for dealing with it during pregnancy. This is a case where a pre-conception consult can be invaluable.
- Immune-related conditions, such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and skin conditions, like atopic dermatitis, often improve during pregnancy because the immune system tends to be depressed at that time.
- IBS and Chrohn's sufferers often experience relief from the chronic diarrhea associated with these conditions because one common poblem of pregnancy is constipation.
