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Malaria

What is it?
Malaria is an infectious disease found worldwide in warmer weather (mainly tropical and subtropical areas). Most people get infected after a mosquito infected with malaria parasites bites them. Others can get it from blood transfusions, organ transplants, or the shared use of needles or syringes contaminated with infected blood.

Pregnancy-Associated Malaria (PAM), also known as placental malaria, is distinctively deadly to both mother and fetus. PAM is usually caused by infection with Plasmodium falciparum, the most dangerous malaria-causing parasites that infect humans. A pregnant woman is more susceptible to contracting malaria and related complications. Some sources mention that pregnant women are more likely to get infected or develop complications repeatedly because immunity is lowered naturally during pregnancy.

Malaria in pregnancy gets in the way of transferring essential substances that typically cause stillbirth, spontaneous abortion, premature delivery, or dangerously low birth weight. Problems can also include placental deficiency, hypoglycemia (deficiency of glucose in the bloodstream.), and anemia (lack of red blood cells). Apart from high mortality risk, infants with low birth weight are at increased risk of poor cognitive and social development. It can also lead to increased chances of getting sick as adults, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

SYMPTOMS

Symptoms:
It can range from mild to severe and can develop between 7-30 days after infection. Most people get a high fever, chills, headache, sweating, muscle soreness, and fatigue. At the same time, others can also have nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, anemia (low red blood cell count), or jaundice (yellowing of the skin and eyes). It can also lead to kidney failure, seizures, confusion, coma, or death, but rare cases.

TREATMENTS
  • Treatment:
    Malaria is not passed through breast milk, so breastfeeding will not give your baby malaria. The prevention of low birth weight related to malaria during pregnancy remains a priority in research. However, if you get infected and are pregnant, you should visit your doctor to avoid serious complications.

    For severe malaria caused by the Plasmodium falciparum parasite, an intravenous drip (used to put fluid or medicines directly into a vein) medication is usually recommended. For some types of malaria, medication taken weekly until you give birth is recommended. However, not all malaria medications are safe for pregnant women, and some have associated risks. Therefore, it is essential to discuss the best option with your doctor. You cannot completely be immune to malaria, so protecting yourself is very important.

PREVENTION
  • Prevention:
    Mosquitoes that spread the infections are more active at night. To prevent infection, close all your windows and do not leave the door open when you go in and out of your room/house. You should wear light-colored clothing (mosquitos do not like dark colors), wear long-sleeved clothes, and stay in a cool room (if possible because mosquitoes do not like the cold). Remember to use mosquito nets and chemical mosquito repellents (ones that are safe to use while pregnant). You should also keep your area clean by destroying the mosquitoes’ breeding areas (still water) and emptying all containers with old water.

HIV

What is it?

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that attacks the body’s immune system. If HIV is not treated, it can lead to AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), which is the late stage of HIV infection due to weakening the immune system. There is currently no effective cure for HIV. Once people get HIV, they have it for life, but it can be controlled and live long, healthy lives while also protecting their partners with proper medical care. People get infected only through blood, semen, vaginal fluids, and breast milk transmission. The virus is not spread by casual contact (hugging or touching), touching items touched by an infected person, saliva, sweat, or tears that are not mixed with an infected person’s blood).

There is a 15 – 45% chance of passing HIV from mother to child anytime during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding (called perinatal transmission) if the proper precautions are not taken. Suppose the mother gets infected while she is already pregnant. In that case, the baby is protected due to the protective barrier formed by the placenta. In early pregnancy, contraction by blood is possible since the placenta isn’t yet fully developed. If the baby gets infected, it can affect all its bodily functions and be fatal. The baby can get infected during labor because the placenta will be separated. However, advances in research have made it possible for several women to give birth without transmitting. 

Some women get complications in their pregnancy such as preterm labor, low birth weight, perinatal mortality (death of a fetus), high blood pressure, diabetes, and growth restriction of the baby. It’s usually recommended that women living with HIV give birth naturally (vaginal birth) unless there is another reason why this would be difficult. If vaginal birth is difficult, it may be safer to have a cesarean section, which removes the baby from the womb. If a mother has a high viral load, they may also be advised to have a cesarean section.

SYMPTOMS

Once HIV gets into your blood, it will multiply and infect white blood cells (specifically the T lymphocytes). Symptoms will appear in 3-6 weeks and last for less than 10 days. Symptoms can include fever, night sweats, fatigue rash, headache, swelling in your neck, armpits, & groin, sore throat, body ache, joint pains, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. After these symptoms are gone, the virus will continue to multiply and attack the immune system until it breaks it down, which may take 10 years.

TREATMENTS

Suppose you have never taken HIV drugs before pregnancy, in your first trimester, or taken medication and found out you are pregnant in the 1st trimester. In that case, your doctor will discuss your treatment plan. Your doctor will prescribe treatment that will not affect your baby. Treatment should be started immediately. Most HIV medicines are safe during pregnancy and will not increase the risk of birth defects. Usually, pregnant women can use the same HIV treatment process as non-pregnant women. Unless, of course, if the known side effects outweigh the benefits.

Anti-viral treatments or Antiretroviral therapy (ART) focus on reducing perinatal transmission and help manage the virus to help protect both you and your baby. Medications that bring down viral load (measure the virus in your blood) help prevent it from passing on to your baby. You have to take extra precautions to avoid infections since HIV reduces your immunity. Practicing good hygiene, healthy eating, and exercise are critical to a healthy pregnancy with HIV.

PREVENTION

The best way is not to get infected, but if you do, you need to take precautions to prevent transmitting it to your baby. As soon as you are positive, you have to start medications immediately. After giving birth, your baby needs to take HIV medicine for 4-6 weeks. 

Your doctor may recommend a cesarean (C-section) delivery to lower the risk of transmission. A vaginal delivery can be an option if your HIV is managed well and your viral load is not detectable. When breastfeeding, there is a risk of transferring. Therefore, your doctor might recommend not nursing and only using formulas. You should also not pre-chew your baby’s food.

Heart conditions

What is it?

Heart conditions include a range of diseases, disorders, and conditions affecting the heart and blood vessels. Heart conditions have different types, including angina (chest pain with short and sharp attacks), heart attack, atherosclerosis (buildup of fats, cholesterol, and other substances in and on your artery walls called plaque), heart failure, cardiovascular disease, and cardiac arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythms). Other heart conditions include congenital heart defects (present at birth), cardiomyopathy (weakened or abnormal heart muscle and function), infections of the heart, and heart valve disorders.

When pregnant, the heart works harder to pump more blood to help the baby develop and grow. Labor and delivery also add to the heart’s workload. If you have heart disease, it can lead to symptoms similar to a heart attack. Some underlying heart conditions cause minimal to no problems during pregnancy. In contrast, others may be much riskier and increase the chance of complications. Simple congenital heart defects can be repaired, and mild heart valve deformities & heart murmurs are generally considered low-risk. Congenital heart disease will increase your risk of a miscarriage, premature birth, or a low birth weight of your baby.

SYMPTOMS

Symptoms include fainting (blood pressure & volume changes), trouble breathing when laying down (might also be caused by the growing uterus), palpitations (rapid, strong, or irregular heartbeat), heart murmurs, chest pain, fatigue, and dizziness.

TREATMENT

Women with pre-existing heart conditions, like chronic high blood pressure, heart disease, and high cholesterol, should carefully monitor it before getting pregnant and after giving birth. Your doctor may advise you to get regular exercise, prescribe medications or other treatments. Regular ultrasounds are needed to monitor your baby’s growth and development.  

 

Almost 50% of pregnant women develop heart arrhythmias (abnormal heartbeat). There are usually no symptoms and are only discovered when taking the woman’s pulse. However, symptoms like dizziness, lightheadedness, or palpitations occur occasionally. To assess the heart’s rhythm, an electrocardiogram (ECG, test that detects and records your heart’s electrical activity) or 24 hour Holter monitor (a small, wearable device that keeps track of your heart rhythm) may be recommended. If symptoms continue or worsen, arrhythmia treatment may be considered.

 

If your blood pressure rises suddenly, it could be a sign of preeclampsia (high blood pressure and damage to another organ system, usually liver and kidneys). Your doctor will prescribe you medication if your blood pressure gets dangerously high. 

 

Depending on the severity, a C-section may be required or an assisted vaginal delivery with forceps or vacuum to avoid pushing towards the end of labor. After delivery, some mothers require intensive monitoring to ensure they are recovering from the delivery.

PREVENTION

Suppose you have a pre-existing heart condition and plan on getting pregnant. In that case, you should have a pre-pregnancy consultation with a cardiologist (doctor specializing in treating heart problems). 

Suppose you do not have pre-existing conditions and are planning or are pregnant. You should consult your doctor to start a healthy diet and lifestyle changes like exercising, limiting caffeine, and stopping smoking from risking developing heart problems.

Asthma

What is it?

Asthma is a chronic lung condition where your airways narrow and swell. It may produce more mucus, making it difficult to breathe. Some people have minor asthma, while for others, it is major and intervenes with daily activities and can lead to a life-threatening asthma attack.

Asthma can impact your pregnancy and affect your and your baby’s health. You should treat it effectively to try and prevent complications; however, if you don’t monitor it, the risk of getting complications increases. These complications can include high blood pressure,  damage to other organ systems (usually kidneys), limited fetal growth, premature birth, C-section, and putting your baby’s life in danger. Pregnancy can worsen your asthma if you have severe asthma, especially if you stop taking your medications. 

SYMPTOMS

Women experience different ranges of asthma symptoms when they get pregnant. It could be the same as before they were pregnant, or it could get worse. Symptoms can include heartburn, persistent coughing (especially at night), wheezing (whistling sound) when breathing, and shortness of breath.

TREATMENT

Your doctor will provide you with the right medication that is the safest for your pregnancy.  The lower your asthma severity before pregnancy, the better you can control it while you are pregnant. You should regularly take your medications to reduce your asthma attack risk.

PREVENTION

You need to take good care of yourself by keeping your prenatal appointments, regularly taking your medications, not smoking, avoiding smokers or dust, and recognizing your warning signs such as coughing, tightening of the chest, and shortness of breath.

Diabetes

What is it?

Diabetes is a chronic disease occurring when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin (hormone regulating blood sugar) called type 1 or when the insulin produced can’t be effectively used called type 2. Lack of insulin or cells that stop responding to insulin will leave too much blood sugar in your bloodstream. Gradually, this can cause serious health problems like heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease. 

Gestational diabetes is diagnosed first during pregnancy (gestation) when the woman did not have diabetes before she got pregnant. Some long-term diabetes problems (eye problems and kidney disease) can worsen with pregnancy, especially if you have high blood glucose levels. There is also a higher chance of developing preeclampsia (sometimes called toxemia) and too much protein in your urine during the second half of pregnancy. High blood glucose levels can increase the possibility of birth defects like heart, brain, or spine defects. Complications include early birth (preterm), miscarriage or stillbirth ( baby dies in the womb), the baby can weigh too much, breathing problems, and low blood glucose (hypoglycemia).

SYMPTOMS

Diabetes symptoms are the same whether you are pregnant or not. Most women don’t experience symptoms, but some may have increased thirst, dry mouth, frequent urination, and fatigue. You should talk to your doctor if you experience these symptoms. 

TREATMENT

It is essential to stay healthy (exercising and eating healthy) and keep your blood glucose as close to normal as possible. If you take oral diabetes medicine, your doctor might switch you to insulin. You should get regular checkups before and during pregnancy to monitor your blood sugar level. Most women with gestational diabetes don’t have it anymore after giving birth. Some continue to have it, referred to as type 2 diabetes.

PREVENTION

There are no guarantees to prevent gestational diabetes. The best way is to have a healthy lifestyle before you get pregnant. You need to follow your meal plan, be physically active, take diabetes medicines (if necessary), stop smoking, and take vitamins (if your doctor recommends it).

Epilepsy 

What is it?

Epilepsy (also known as a seizure disorder) is a chronic neurological (central nervous system) disorder where brain activity becomes abnormal, causing recurrent and unprovoked seizures or periods of unusual behavior, sensations, and sometimes loss of awareness. This might be genetic or because of a brain injury. People with epilepsy have abnormal electrical signals in the brain that cause a seizure. They cause severe muscle or very mild with barely any symptoms.

Most women with epilepsy can deliver healthy babies but require special care during their pregnancy due to random seizures. Pregnancy does not cause epilepsy, but women with epilepsy are more likely to have more seizures during pregnancy. This could be due to medicines that treat epilepsy working differently during pregnancy, such as not being absorbed or not working. Seizures during pregnancy can cause low fetal heart rate, decreased oxygen to the fetus, fetal injury, premature separation of the placenta from the uterus (placental abruption), miscarriage due to trauma (falling during a seizure), preterm labor, premature birth, birth defects (spine and brain), stillbirth, smaller size, and severe bleeding in newborn. Babies who have mothers with epilepsy are likely to develop seizures when they get older.

SYMPTOMS

Epilepsy symptoms are the same for women who are pregnant and not. A woman may have frequent seizures with no known cause. In addition to seizures, the most common symptoms are headaches, mood swings or energy shifts, dizziness, fainting, confusion, and memory loss. Some women may also feel that they are about to have a seizure right before it happens.

TREATMENT

The most important thing is to continuously monitor and manage your epilepsy with prenatal and postnatal care. You have to visit your doctor regularly, who might prescribe you medications to be taken in small doses to prevent or control your seizures. Your doctor will choose the type of medication with the least side effects for your pregnancy.

It is uncommon to have seizures during delivery, but it is possible. If you have a seizure, it might be stopped with intravenous (fluids injected into a vein) medication. If the seizure does not stop, your doctor might perform a C-section. You are more likely to have a seizure during labor if you had frequent seizures in your third trimester. Your doctor will review the best delivery method with you to avoid the increased risk of seizures during your delivery. Women with epilepsy might use the same pain relief methods during labor and delivery as other pregnant women.

PREVENTION

There are no guarantees to prevent gestational diabetes. The best way is to have a healthy lifestyle before you get pregnant. You need to follow your meal plan, be physically active, take diabetes medicines (if necessary), stop smoking, and take vitamins (if your doctor recommends it).

Obesity 

What is it?

It is a condition when a person has excessive fat that increases the risk of getting more health problems like heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and certain cancers. It is caused by inherited, physiological, and environmental factors, poor diet, and exercise choices.

Pregnant women normally gain weight, but obesity can cause several health risks for you and your baby. Complications like stillbirth and recurrent miscarriage, gestational diabetes, high blood pressure and damage to other organ systems (usually liver and kidneys), cardiac dysfunction, sleep apnea (sleep disorder where breathing is interrupted repeatedly during sleep), and C-section and the risk of C-section complications. The baby will also be susceptible to health risks such as birth defects, significantly larger than average, impaired growth, childhood asthma, and obesity.

SYMPTOMS

Epilepsy symptoms are the same for women who are pregnant and not. A woman may have frequent seizures with no known cause. In addition to seizures, the most common symptoms are headaches, mood swings or energy shifts, dizziness, fainting, confusion, and memory loss. Some women may also feel that they are about to have a seizure right before it happens.

TREATMENT

The best treatment is to lose weight. Pregnant women who are obese need to start a diet and exercise routine to improve their own and their baby’s health. Talk to your doctor before you begin to determine the best type of exercise routine while you are pregnant. You should start slowly and build slowly. Since your joints aren’t strong, you should start small with walking and swimming. Do not overdo your workouts because it can be dangerous to your baby. You should also eat nutritious foods and avoid empty calories like fast food, fried food, soft drinks, pastries, sweets, and microwave dinners.

PREVENTION

The only way to prevent obesity is to have a regular exercise routine while eating a healthy and balanced diet. 

Thyroid Disease 

What is it?

It is a medical condition that keeps the thyroid gland (found in front of the neck and produces hormones to help regular other organs) from making the right amount of hormones. Thyroid disease occurs when the thyroid gland makes too much (hyperthyroidism) or too little (hypothyroidism) hormones. Thyroid hormones control metabolism in your body, and without monitoring, they can affect your entire body. When there are too many hormones, your body uses energy too quickly, making you tired, faster heartbeat, losing weight without trying, and making you feel nervous. When there are too few hormones, you will feel tired, gain weight, and not tolerate cold temperatures. 

Both conditions make it difficult to get pregnant. Thyroid hormones are crucial for the normal development of your baby’s brain and nervous system. Your baby depends on your supply of thyroid hormone for the first trimester. However, after 12 weeks, your baby’s thyroid works independently can not risk transmission but can’t make enough thyroid hormones until 18-20 weeks. Thyroid disease can cause complications during pregnancy like miscarriage, premature birth, low birth weight, preeclampsia (dangerous rise in blood pressure in late pregnancy), thyroid storm (sudden, severe worsening of symptoms), congestive heart failure (a condition where the heart muscle is wear and cannot pump as it used to), stillbirth, and anemia. Thyroid disease can affect the baby in ways like a fast heart rate, early closing of the soft spot in the baby’s skull, poor weight gain, and irritability.

Postpartum thyroiditis is a thyroid inflammation that causes stored thyroid hormone to leak out of your thyroid gland. It affects about 1 in 20 women during the first year of giving birth and is more common in women with type 1 diabetes.

SYMPTOMS

Some signs of hyperthyroidism in pregnancy include fast and irregular heartbeat, fatigue, difficulty dealing with heat, shaky hands, unexplained weight loss. Some signs of hypothyroidism include extreme fatigue, difficulty dealing with cold, muscle cramps, severe constipation, trouble with concentration, and memory loss. Postpartum thyroiditis usually has no symptoms, but it can be irritability, trouble dealing with heat, tiredness, sleeping, and a fast heartbeat.

TREATMENT

You may not need treatment if you have mild hyperthyroidism during pregnancy. However, if it is severe, you might be prescribed antithyroid medicines that prevent too much thyroid hormone from entering your baby’s bloodstream. Hypothyroidism treatment consists of medications that replace your hormone that the thyroid can no longer make. You should visit your doctor regularly to monitor the progress of your pregnancy. Postpartum thyroiditis doesn’t usually need treatment. Although, if the symptoms are irritating you, your doctor might prescribe a beta-blocker (medicine that slows your heart rate).

PREVENTION

To reduce the risk of thyroid disease, you should perform a thyroid neck check, minimize soy intake, have a thyroid X-ray (but be careful of other X-rays since the thyroid is vulnerable to radiation), consider supplements, avoid environmental toxins, do not go on a starvation diet, eat well, and stop smoking.

Rh Factor / Rhesus factor 

What is it?

It is a type of protein inherited and located on the red blood cells surface. You are Rh-positive if your blood has the protein and negative if your blood lacks the protein. Most people have Rh-positive. The Rh factor is needed when it comes to blood donations and transfusions. Rh-positive people will not make anti-Rh antibodies, but Rh-negative people will produce the antibodies that attack the Rh-positive blood. Hence, an Rh-positive can receive both positive and negative transfusions, but Rh-negative can only receive Rh-negative blood.

It doesn’t mean that you’re unhealthy if you’re Rh-negative. It is only a concern if you are pregnant and negative, but your baby is positive. This is called Rh incompatibility, where your immune system produces Rh antibodies that attack your baby’s blood cells because it is seen as a foreign object. This happens when your and your baby’s blood come into contact through miscarriage, abortion, ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy, bleeding & abdominal trauma during pregnancy, tests that require cells or fluids to be withdrawn, and delivery of a baby (either vaginal or cesarean).

These antibodies don’t cause harm to your first pregnancy. However, suppose your next baby is also positive. In that case, these antibodies might damage your baby’s red blood cells leading to life-threatening anemia (the baby’s body can’t replace the destroyed red blood cells quickly). 

SYMPTOMS

You will not have any symptoms if you have Rh compatibility. However, your baby will develop symptoms after birth like pale skin & mucous membranes (lining the cheeks and gums), limp & sleepy, jaundice (yellowing of skin and whitening of eyes), trouble breathing, and swelling of face, arms, & legs.

TREATMENT

You don’t need treatment if you and your baby are both Rh-negative. Suppose you are negative and your baby is positive. In that case, your doctor will inject you with Rh Immune Globulin (Rhlg) (a medication that prevents antibody production) after each blood contact.

Your baby will require treatment if there is an Rh incompatibility. Treatments can be phototherapy to decrease jaundice, blood transfusions through the umbilical cord and after birth to treat severe anemia, Immunoglobulin to decrease the red blood cells destruction. Your baby might get brain damage even if s/he has been treated. The incompatibility can be fatal to your baby.

PREVENTION

You cannot pick the Rh factor your baby gets. However, if you are negative and your baby is positive, your doctor may inject you with Rhlg before the antibodies are produced. These injections are usually administered in the 28th week of your pregnancy and up to 72 hours after birth.

Rh Factor / Rhesus factor 

What is it?

Is a dangerous infectious disease that affects the lungs, mainly spread through tiny droplets into the air due to the coughing, sneezing, or release of fluids of an infected person. If it is left untreated, it can spread to other organs. There are two types called active and inactive or latent TB. Active is when you get sick and contiguous. Latent is when you have the infection but aren’t contagious (the bacteria are inactive). Other than the lungs, TB can infect the kidneys, uterus, brain, bone, and bone marrow.

TB can cause serious risk to a pregnant woman and her baby if it isn’t diagnosed and treated before it worsens. Early diagnosis and appropriate treatment (within 2 weeks) can benefit the baby. Late diagnosis and treatment can lead to fetal mortality, prematurity, growth delay, and low birth weight. A woman with untreated active TB can infect her baby. Breastfeeding is safe for mothers treated with first-line anti-TB drugs since it only has a small presence in breast milk and is not toxic.

SYMPTOMS

Symptoms aren’t unique and can seem like regular pregnancy changes like increased respiratory rate, loss of appetite, and fatigue. The symptoms depend on where the bacteria is growing in your body. Symptoms for TB in the lungs can include severe cough (lasts 3 or more weeks), chest pain, coughing up blood (referred to as hemoptysis) or coughing up sputum (mucus in the lungs), fatigue, weight loss, indigestion, loss of appetite, chills, fever, and night sweats.

TREATMENT

The same anti-TB drugs used for non–pregnant women can be used by pregnant women. Your doctor could treat you with a combination of 4 drugs for 6 months which includes the first 2 months (initial phase) of 4 antibiotics and pyridoxine (prevent vitamin B6 deficiency) the last 4 months (continuation phase) of treatment of 2 main antibiotics and pyridoxine. The drugs can reach the baby but have no effects. However, some TB medications should be avoided because it can damage the fetus. Discuss with your doctor to determine the safest one to use. 

PREVENTION

You have to avoid people infected with TB, practice good hygiene,  and get vaccinated. If you get infected, you have to be treated early to prevent TB from reaching your baby. The baby is unlikely to be infected while in the womb.

Breech

What is it?

It occurs when the baby’s feet are pointed towards the birth canal instead of its head. This happens for about 3-4% of all pregnancies. A baby isn’t considered breech before the 35/36 week mark. Breech happens in situations like the pregnant woman having a history of multiple pregnancies, multiple babies at once, history of delivering prematurely, has placenta previa (placenta partially or fully blocks the neck of the uterus which interferes with regular delivery of a baby), uterus containing either too little or too much amniotic fluid and abnormally shaped uterus or other problems such as fibroids (tumors made of smooth muscle cells and fibrous connective tissue that develop in the uterus). 

The complications that come with a breech pregnancy can include high chances that your baby will get stuck in the birth canal and for the umbilical cord cutting off the baby’s oxygen supply.

SYMPTOMS

There are 3 types of breech positions. Complete breech is when the baby’s butt points down, and the legs are folded at the knees with the feel tucked in. Frank breech is when the baby’s butt points down, and their legs are straight up in front of their body, with their feet near the face or head. Footling breech is when one or both of the baby’s feet point down hence being the first part of the body to come out. 

TREATMENT

Doctors usually suggest a C-section for all babies with breech positions, particularly premature because they are smaller and more fragile. Since premature babies have a larger head than their bodies than full-term babies, they can’t stretch the cervical opening as much, making it more difficult for the head to emerge.

PREVENTION

Your doctor may be able to turn the baby when you’re between 32-37 weeks pregnant. There are different ways of turning the baby.

  •  External version (EV): this is a procedure where the doctor manually turns the baby’s position using her/his hands through your stomach. This is usually possible between 36 and 38 weeks of pregnancy. It requires two people to perform along with constant monitoring of the baby. However, some reports state that the procedure is only effective 50% of the time. 
  • Inversion is a popular method where pregnant women invert their bodies to prompt the baby to flip. Some methods are the pregnant woman standing on her hands underwater, elevating their hips with pillows, or taking the stairs to help the pelvis elevate.

 

STI & Pregnancy

What is it?

It is an infection spread predominantly by sexual contact, including kissing, vaginal, anal, and oral sex. Some STIs can also be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding. An infection is when a bacteria, virus, or parasite enters and grows in or on your body.

Getting infected with an STI while pregnant can cause severe problems for you and your baby. STIs during pregnancy can cause many complications such as: 

  • HIV: pregnant women can pass HIV to their babies during pregnancy, labor, and vaginal delivery, or breastfeeding if it isn’t diagnosed before or early in pregnancy to reduce the risk of transmission.
  • Hepatitis B: when pregnant women get infected close to delivery, the risk of transmission is the greatest. Transmission can be prevented if infants are treated immediately after birth.
  • Chlamydia: can cause preterm labor, premature rupture of the membranes, and low birth weight. It can be transmitted to the babies during vaginal delivery. It can be treated with an antibiotic if it’s diagnosed during pregnancy.
  • Syphilis: can cause premature birth, stillbirth, and death after birth. Untreated infants have a high risk of complications involving multiple organs.
  • Gonorrhea: untreated gonorrhea can cause premature birth, premature rupture of the membranes, and low birth weight. It can be transmitted to the babies during vaginal delivery.
  • Hepatitis C: can increase the risk of premature birth, small size for gestational age, and low birth weight. This type of liver infection can be passed to the baby during pregnancy.

Other side effects include eye infection, pneumonia, blood infection, brain damage, blindness, deafness, and chronic liver disease.

SYMPTOMS

General symptoms include sores or bumps (genitals, mouth, or rectal area), pain when urinating’ unusual discharge from penis or vagina, unusual vaginal bleeding,pain during sex, sore & swollen lymph nodes (tissue that contains white blood cells, which fight infection), especially in the groin, lower abdominal pain, and rash on the body, hands, or feet.

TREATMENT

STIs like chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis can be treated and cured with antibiotics during pregnancy. STIs caused by viruses like hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV cannot be cured. For some, antiviral medications are given to reduce the risk of transmitting it to your baby. 

PREVENTION

To prevent you from getting STDs, risk of transmission, make sure to get regular checkups for you & your partner, use condoms consistently & correctly, and get vaccinated against HPV and hepatitis.

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