What should I know about rheumatoid arthritis and pregnancy?
You should know a few things about rheumatoid arthritis and pregnancy if you suffer from a condition and hope to get pregnant. Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that most often affects women. It usually causes inflammation and pain of the joint in the hands and legs. Most drugs for rheumatoid arthritis should not be used during pregnancy. Another thing to know is that rheumatoid arthritis can cause complications and problems with the child's delivery.
If you plan to have a child, it is important to first discuss rheumatoid arthritis and pregnancy. Perhaps it will have to adjust your medicines, especially if you are taking either methotrexate and leflunomide, anti-rheumatoid drugs that work against the progression of the disease. Both drugs can lead to congenital defects if they are taken while the couple are trying to conceive. Congenital defects may occur if one parent takes medication during conception. Depending on the type of medicine you are on, you may have to plan years before pregnancy because it takes a while for the mediciney fully leaves your body. For example, leflunomide can cause congenital defects up to two years after you stop taking it.
It is important to know what treatments are safe for rheumatoid arthritis and pregnancy. You can enjoy certain corticosteroids during pregnancy or a different type of anti-rheumatoid drug such as sulfasalazine. Another way to reduce the risk to the fetus is to stop taking drugs completely when trying to become pregnant and during pregnancy. Many women with rheumatoid arthritis experience less or no symptoms during pregnancy. Unfortunately, for some women, their condition can get worse if they leave medicines during pregnancy.
While most women are able to carry a child without complications, rheumatoid arthritis and pregnancy for the fetus. Children born to women with rheumatoid arthritis are more likely to have low birth weight. Rhevmatoid arthritis can increase the chance of a woman to deliver inLiš early or bring it more often to need a caesarean section.
About 3 percent of women with rheumatoid arthritis may develop pre -clamps during pregnancy compared to 1 percent of all women without rheumatoid arthritis. Symptoms of preeclampsia include high blood pressure and proteins in the urine. It usually occurs after 20 weeks of pregnancy and can be very dangerous for the mother and child, especially if this happens soon. Complications from preeclampsia may include seizures into the mother, lack of oxygen and blood flow to the fetus and disruption of placentate when the placenta separates from the uterine wall.