The Effects and Alternative Options of Medications During Pregnancy

Most women are unaware of the risks associated with taking prescription medications while pregnant. Usually the fear

Substance abuse has been a worldwide problem at all levels of society since the beginning of time. Attention has been made toward the use of legal and illegal substance by pregnant women over the past several decades. Almost all drugs are known to cross the placenta and have some effect on the fetus. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (2013) the first studies of the effect of substances consumed by a pregnant women to the developing fetus were identified in the 1960’s of prenatal tobacco use. These studies opened the door to further research and studies. The effects of Alcohol and opiate use have been studied since the 1970’s (Jones, Smith, 1973) and the effects of a variety of other drugs have been studied since 1979 and early 1980’s (Flinnegan, 1979).

Pregnancy is a very difficult time in a women’s life, everything that is digested, breathed, and felt affects the fetus. Teratogens are factors that cause developmental problems of an embryo. These factors include stress; toxin such as drug and cigarette use, the health and even the age of the mother can have an impact on the development of the fetus. Teratogen can cause birth defect that may lead to life long consequences to the child. I am very passionate about this topic due to the alarming increase of birth defects and abnormalities that have been occurring during my generation. In America one in every thirty-three babies are born with a defect

Another risk of using hycodan during your pregnancy, is the baby may be born with withdrawal symptoms, or

With an increase in articles discussing external effects that can be avoided to help protect the fetus will help several mothers increase the chance of having a healthier child. Websites such as the CDC in collaboration with other websites can lead to mothers that are properly informed of possible defects that can occur with their child. For a drug to receive pregnancy category research is required. However to find subjects willing to risk their child having a defect to help categories a drug is limited. There are instances where some women may not even be aware that they are pregnant. They may be on an opioid regimen and be total unaware of the damage it could cause their unborn fetus. Once realized by the physician, the mother should be tapered off and place on a pregnancy appropriate therapy of either Methadone or Buprenorphine. There are some mothers that may be addicted to the opioid therapy prior to pregnancy. These mothers require a switch of therapy and behavioral therapy to ensure safety of both the mother and child. Some mothers might be opioid naïve till pregnancy. They may need opioid therapy due them needing surgical procedure (car accident, emergency surgeries), infection, injuries or chronic diseases (such as nephropathy).

Epidural anesthesia is the most popular method of pain relief during labor. More women request an epidural than any other method of pain relief. More women giving birth use epidural anesthesia. The purpose of an epidural is to stipulate numbness and relief of pain. Epidurals restrict nerve impulses from the lower spine.

When a woman finds out she is going to have a baby, it should be the most exciting times in her life. However, there may be many teratogens that interfere with the pregnancy and may cause future issues for the child. A teratogen “is any agent that can potentially cause a birth defect or negatively alter cognitive and behavioral outcomes” (Stantrock, page 63).

When you are pregnant, every single thing that you eat, drink or take into your body will not only affect you but it will also affect your child. Many women tend to change their diet and exercise routines when they become pregnant. The most important thing is to avoid drug abuse and also avoid alcohol abuse. Many women are not as careful as they should be when they become pregnant. Seeing as many people are not aware of the effect that drugs have on the unborn children of pregnant women, those of us who know of the danger should spread awareness about it. Using drugs during

Pain medications can sometimes be harmful to a mother and her baby during pregnancy and delivery. Most doctors recommend not taking any medications during pregnancy unless absolutely necessary. It is not very realistic to expect every woman to go through nine months without taking any kind of medication. Fortunately, there are many safe medications to keep pain to a minimum. When it comes to over the counter pain relievers, acetaminophen, mainly known as Tylenol seems to be the one that doctors recommend most. As long as the correct dose is taken, this is a safe option for a headache or fever. One over the counter medication that should never be taken during pregnancy is ibuprofen. If ibuprofen is taken during the first trimester, it can increase

Having an autoimmune disease while pregnant increases the risk of the pregnancy on the mother and fetus. Ironically, most autoimmune diseases predominantly affect women (Goebel, 2015). To make the problem worse, most of the data available on safe treatments for these diseases during pregnancy comes from animal data (since trials on pregnant women are often considered immoral or too dangerous). These medications, based primarily on animal studies, are generally not updated after they are initially labeled as category “A” through “X” (safe during pregnancy to contraindicated during pregnancy, respectively) as new evidence becomes available. This poses a risk and presents a problem when trying to treat and intervene for pregnant women with autoimmune diseases such as celiac disease, irritable bowel disease, type one diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis. When counseling these women with regards to medication use during pregnancy, it is important to weigh the potential adverse effects and risks of the medication with the potential risk of having the disease left untreated. By researching common medications used to treat celiac disease, irritable bowel disease, type one diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis (like DMRDS, NSAIDS, corticosteroids, antibiotics, and insulin) and then individualizing interventions and patient education in regards to that specific autoimmune disease and pregnancy, we as nurses can better care for, treat, and

Hannah and Chlovetta you guys all bring interesting points. I do agree with you with the risks associated with using pain relieving medications during labor. All decisions including the use of pain relieving medication prior to labor should be a joint one. However since everyone experiences pain differently and it is the woman experiecieng that pain at the moment, she can choose to decide to use pain relieving medication as she wishes. It takes two to have a child and I definitely I agree but it takes only the woman to experience that excruciating pain during labor. Chlovetta did bring up a good p[point about the role of the father during that painful moment to constantly remind the woman of their mutual decision and well being of their

There are several hazards and risk with prenatal development. I believe that ‘Drugs’ has a huge impact on prenatal development. Prenatal substance abuse continues to be a significate problem in the country and possess import health risk for the developing fetus.

There are many things that affect the development of a fetus throughout pregnancy such as prescription and nonprescription drugs, illegal drugs, tobacco, alcohol, radiation, environmental pollution, infectious diseases, maternal nutrition, and maternal emotional stress. Before taking prescription and nonprescription drugs, a mother should consult a physician because even if she thinks a drug is safe to use it can cause development issues and be really harmful to the baby. Illegal drugs are highly- addictive and can make the baby addicted to the

However, Malik et al.’s article identified two studies from McLintock et al. (2009) and James et al. (2006), that there is evidence of enoxaparin (LMW heparin) with association of low risk maternal thromboembolic events with positive fetal outcomes if prescribed with aspirin, and has an 18.4% of maternal thromboembolic events with 10.5% of fetal mortality if given alone throughout pregnancy, respectively (Malik et al., 2012, p. 485, 487). The studies reviewed by Malik et al. ranges from Medline articles from 1948 to September 2011, with more studies supporting the use of heparin as compared to LMW heparin with or without aspirin. Therefore, based on the recommendation by the ACC and the AHA, and the evidence supported in Malik et. al.’s review, warfarin will be discontinued and heparin will be initiated for Mrs. Livingston in her fourth pregnancy.

For years and years, many believed that babies were completely protected in their mothers’ womb by the placenta. It was not commonly known how vulnerable babies are at every stage of prenatal development, from conception through birth. There are an incredible amount of environmental, biological, and social factors, called teratogens that can affect a baby from the very moment of conception. From this moment, babies are not only developing, but also learning all the time. A fetus experiences the everyday things that its mother experiences, down to the very air that she breathes or the emotions that she’s feeling. While it can be intimidating and frightening to be aware of all of these teratogens, it is also one of the best and smartest things that you can do to promote a healthy pregnancy, so that you are able to avoid these risks. It has been said that the first 1,000 days between pregnancy and a child’s second birthday are the most critical days to that child’s survival and development. It is up to us as mothers to ensure our babies’ healthy development and to make sure that those 1,000 days are as healthy and positive as possible.