Archive for the ‘News’ Category
Wondering whether to paint that nursery pink or blue? You may not have to wait so long to find out, thanks to a maternal blood test.
A recent Norwegian study published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology found that a special maternal blood test was 100% accurate in determining a baby’s sex in 200 different pregnancies.
Most parents who want to know the baby’s sex have to wait until the second trimester, when an ultrasound exam can tell if you’re carrying a boy or a girl.
According to a WiserPregnancy survey, 81% of women have an ultrasound. Although ultrasound exams are often part of routine prenatal care, 51% of these women have an exam specifically to learn the baby’s sex.
However, the blood test in the Norwegian study could be particularly valuable for parents who have a family history of a sex-linked genetic disorder, such as hemophilia or Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Being able to learn the baby’s gender sooner could help parents and doctors make important decisions about managing the pregnancy.
If this test becomes publicly available, it could offer an alternative to riskier prenatal tests such as amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling (CVS) in evaluating the risk of a genetic birth defect.
Do you plan on learning the baby’s sex before delivery? Why or why not?
Earlier this year, a judge ordered a pregnant Florida woman to stay in bed after her doctor advised she go on bed rest. The woman, Samantha Burton, questioned her doctor’s recommendation. Although she was at risk for a miscarriage at week 25 of her pregnancy, she wondered if bed rest for up to 15 weeks was necessary. And as a working mother of two toddlers, she didn’t think it was feasible.
Before Burton could seek a second medical opinion, a circuit court judge ordered that Burton stay confined to her hospital bed and to undergo “any and all medical treatments” her doctor deemed necessary for the fetus. Unfortunately, after three days in the hospital, Burton underwent an emergency C-section and the baby was found dead.
The case continues in district court to determine if the lower court overstepped its boundaries. Can a court intervene in a pregnant woman’s care of her fetus?
Burton’s predicament isn’t so unusual. According to a Wiser Pregnancy survey, just over 11% of pregnant women have been put on bed rest. Although medical professionals debate the effectiveness of bed rest at preventing preterm delivery or miscarriage, women with certain conditions – high blood pressure, cervical insufficiency, pregnancy with multiples – may very well end up spending several weeks on bed rest.
Doctors may recommend bed rest even for conditions that aren’t severe. Of women put on bed rest:
- 21.8% report that their condition was not severe
- 37.6% report that their condition was somewhat severe
- 20.0% report that their condition was severe
- 20.6% report that their condition was very severe
Obviously, bed rest can take a substantial toll on career, parenting and other responsibilities. Yet regardless of the severity of the condition, many women will go on bed rest if their doctor advises it.
Do you think Burton was justified in her objection, or was the judge right to step in to protect the fetus’s best interest? And if your doctor orders bed rest, how will you respond?
Our site is getting bigger and better! Thanks to your feedback, we’re making WiserPregnancy even more useful. New content, data and features are coming your way, plus some parts have been redesigned.
Stand-out additions include:
- Doctor data – Ever wonder what your doctor did in her pregnancy? Now you can find out. More than 225 doctors – who are also moms – took our pregnancy survey. About 50% of the docs are OB/GYNs; the other half are internal medicine and general practitioner doctors. Get access to these doctor-moms’ decisions about their pregnancies, and compare them to your own decisions.
- More peer data – WiserPregnancy currently has data from more than 530 women. In the last few weeks, an additional 1,510 expectant or new moms completed the survey. That’s even more relevant information about the important decisions they made in their pregnancies.
- More info about pregnancy topics – We currently cover just over 40 pregnancy-related health issues. You wanted more? You got it! We’ve gathered data and research on an additional 26 pregnancy topics. Coming in February, you’ll have access to data, descriptions and questions to ask your doctor about nearly 70 different pregnancy issues. New topics include: bed rest, diet, financial planning during pregnancy, eco-friendly pregnancy, parenting while pregnant, miscarriage and multiples, among others.
- New and improved community – Connect with others on our forums, in our blogs and on our Twitter page.
- Customized newsletters – Each week you can get an email newsletter that tracks your pregnancy and shares some of the health issues you may be experiencing that week. Just sign up – it’s free!
Do you have any other suggestions for us? What do you think about the improvements?
Sometimes it feels like the baby is never going to come out. If so, you may be thinking about inducing labor, just to hurry it along. It’s a popular choice: In 2007, for the 11th consecutive year, the number of C-sections in the U.S. rose, reaching 31.8% for all live births, according to the CDC/National Center For Health Statistics.
However, you may want to reconsider, suggests a new study from the University of Rochester School of Medicine.
The study found that inducing labor increases the risk that a woman will have a Cesarean delivery, one that she may not have needed if she’d waited to go into labor naturally. The study found that 1 to 2 out of every 25 induced labors resulted in a C-section.
Why is this a concern? Because C-sections, as common as they are, are still surgical procedures. As such, they are associated with several risks, including infection, maternal bleeding, blood clots and injury to mother or baby. Of course, C-sections are medically necessary in some circumstances: You have diabetes, high blood pressure and placenta problems; your baby is not growing well; or you’re 10 days past your due date.
However, if those don’t apply to you, the risks linked to being induced and having an unplanned C-section could outweigh the benefits.
Fortunately, maternal health problems that may require earlier delivery are not common, according to a recent WiserPregnancy survey:
In many of these cases, doctors decided early delivery was necessary.
If your condition doesn’t warrant early delivery, why is it better to wait for spontaneous (i.e., natural) labor? Besides giving your baby more time to develop, women who are not induced avoid the risk that they will need an otherwise unnecessary C-section.
Have you considered setting a date to be induced? Why or why not?
For many moms-to-be, taking medication is up there with smoking, alcohol and caffeine – completely out of the question. If there’s a risk – even a very slight one – that that baby could be harmed, these substances are usually considered off-limits until after delivery.
But what if your health – and your baby’s well-being – depends on you controlling symptoms that could develop into a life-threatening situation? Would you take prescription medication?
As it turns out, approximately two-thirds of women take prescription medication during pregnancy. WiserPregnancy data shows prescription medication is often used for these conditions:
There are a few widespread, reliable studies that fully investigate the effects of medication and mothers and babies. However, the effects of many drugs have yet to be studied, in part due to ethical concerns or the lack of large sample sizes tracked over time.
This has not gone unnoticed by the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA has proposed to study the safety of medications taken during pregnancy. The results will help physicians and patients make better decisions. They could also pave the way for future regulations and medical procedure guidelines.
Did you take prescription medication during pregnancy? Why or why not?
Crowds, long lines and the same holiday songs blaring over store loudspeakers can bring on a pounding headache even for the heartiest of holiday shoppers. When you’re pregnant and feel a headache coming on, do you take over-the-counter (OTC) medication to fend off the inevitable pain, or do you decide to do without any medication and suffer the consequences?
According to a WiserPregnancy survey, moms-to-be are split down the middle on this issue. About half of pregnant women take OTC painkillers to treat common ailments, including headaches (55%), colds (51%) and back pain (50%).
If you’re in the no-medication-during-pregnancy camp, you’re not alone. Taking medication during pregnancy is somewhat taboo in U.S. culture, and with good reason. Studies have linked some medications to an increased risk of birth defects or other pregnancy complications, and many moms do not want to take any chances.
However, some drugs have been thoroughly studied and are considered safe for you and your baby. They can make you more comfortable, and your doctor may recommend OTC treatment, especially if your symptoms prevent you from functioning normally and focusing on sustaining a healthy pregnancy.
Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is one OTC medication on the okay list and a medication of choice for many expectant moms.
New study findings in the January 2010 publication of Obstetrics & Gynecology magazine report that there is no evidence that acetaminophen use during pregnancy increases the risk of birth defects. In fact, the study suggests that when women used Tylenol or other acetaminophen-based drugs to lower fever in the first trimester, they had a lower risk of having a baby with certain birth defects in comparison to women who did not use fever-reducing medication.
Remember to check with your doctor if you are considering taking OTC medication during pregnancy to be on the safe side.
How do you feel about medication during pregnancy? Have you treated any pregnancy ailments with OTC medication?
We may be in a recession, but our national production of babies is booming.
A new report by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics finds that babies were born in the U.S. in 2007 than in any previous year. There were more than 4.3 million births in 2007, an uptick of 1% from 2006.
Unfortunately, the report also shows that the U.S. has not made much progress in one critical area: infant mortality. Infant mortality in the U.S. was 6.77 deaths per 1,000 live births, similar to 2006 rates but still high when compared to other developed countries such as France and Japan.
Why? Higher rates of preterm births may be to blame.
Premature delivery increases the risk for newborn health complications. Preemies are also at higher risk for long-term health problems, including respiratory, learning and behavioral problems. Most experts recommend that women try to carry the baby at least 39 weeks before delivering to prevent newborn health complications.
What can you do to prevent premature delivery? Getting good prenatal care and working closely with your doctor to manage maternal complications is a start. Anemia and gestational hypertension are among the many conditions that can cause premature delivery.
The good news is that a recent WiserPregnancy survey has found that most women already seek help for conditions like these: 87% of women with anemia were treated for the condition and 100% of women diagnosed with gestational hypertension saw their doctors monthly or more often.
However, certain symptoms such as vaginal bleeding or abdominal pain may also indicate a problem, so it’s a good idea to call your doctor if you experience them.
Has premature delivery been a concern for you? What advice has your doctor given you?
What do women worry about most while pregnant? Concerns about the baby’s health top the list.
A new March of Dimes survey found that the leading cause of worry for moms-to-be is birth defects (78%), followed by concern that stress in their lives might harm the baby’s health (74%) and wondering whether their baby will be born too soon (71%).
If these or other issues worry you, learning the odds may provide some peace of mind. For example, couples have a very low chance (3%–4%) of having a baby with a birth defect. Just 2% of couples have a family history of birth defects, according to a WiserPregnancy survey.
If you are concerned that your baby might be born with a birth defect, you can do certain tests to learn if you are at increased risk of having a baby with a problem. A genetic counselor can help you decide if testing is right for you and make decisions based on your personal values and beliefs.
What else can you do? Research and talk about your concerns with others. Learning the facts, hearing a reassuring voice or outlining an action plan can put your mind at ease. Your health care provider, spouse or partner, family, birthing class instructor or nutritionist can help answer questions and ease your worries. Read the rest of this entry »
Sinus infections, UTIs, strep throat… if you’ve had one of these bacterial infections, your doctor likely treated you with antibiotics. But when you’re pregnant, it’s normal to start questioning the safety of everything you take into your body.
And in light of a recent CDC report linking two antibiotiocs to birth defects, the caution is certainly warranted. However, the report does affirm that most antibiotics are safe for pregnant women.
That’s good news for the majority of pregnant women who do take antibiotics. An ongoing WiserPregnancy survey finds that most pregnant women do take antibiotics when prescribed by their doctors:
- 87% of pregnant women who tested positive for Group B strep were given antibiotic
- 91% of pregnant women take prescribed antibiotics when they have a UTI during pregnancy
- 100% of pregnant women with bacterial vaginosis take prescribed antibiotics during pregnancy
The two types of antibiotics warned against by the CDC are nitrofurantoins and sulfonamides (also called “sulfa” drugs); they are most commonly prescribed for urinary tract infections. These two drugs have been linked to an increased risk of having a baby with a birth defect such as anencephaly (malformation of the skull and brain), heart or limb defects and cleft palate.
On the safe list (unless you are allergic to them): penicillin, erythromycin and cephalosporin – three of the most common infection fighters.
You’re not alone if you’re torn about taking antibiotics if you contract a bacterial infection during pregnancy. Many women are willing to deal with the annoying and sometimes painful symptoms to keep your baby safe. However, your doctor may urge you to take antibiotics to prevent you from developing potentially dangerous complications, such as preterm labor or maternal sepsis (blood infection).
Have you taken antibiotics for a bacterial infection during pregnancy? How do you feel about taking antibiotics during pregnancy?
Have you shaken hands with someone lately? Taken a flight? Heard someone near you cough? You’ve probably thought, That person may have H1N1.
The 2009 H1N1 flu has everyone on germ watch. But for pregnant women, the alarm is justified – they’re unusually susceptible to the virus. About 70% of people who have died from the 2009 H1N1 flu have been considered “high risk.” Included in this high-risk group are pregnant women.
As of early October, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 28 pregnant women had died from 2009 H1N1 flu complications.
Why are pregnant women at higher risk for contracting the virus? Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC, explains:
“A woman’s immune system changes during pregnancy to prevent an immune reaction against the fetus and the risk of infections can be greater [as a result]….The other reason is mechanical. As the womb gets larger, with the baby growing, there can be pressing on the airways and a restrictive lung disease. So it’s harder to take a deep breath, and it’s harder to fight off a lung infection, especially in the later stages of pregnancy.”
So the big question is, should pregnant women get vaccinated against H1N1?
Read the rest of this entry »
The material on this site is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment provided by a qualified health care provider.
Wondering whether to paint that nursery pink or blue? You may not have to wait so long to find out, thanks to a maternal blood test.
