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One of the most frequent questions of women with this condition is: Who has lupus can get pregnant? The answer to that question depends a lot on the health conditions that women with lupus may have.
The medical recommendation is that they do not become pregnant due to the potential risks for her and her baby. Even so, most of these women, despite all the risk that the disease may bring, manage to generate and give birth to perfectly healthy babies .
What is Lupus?
Lupus is a rare autoimmune disease , more common in women , caused by an imbalance of the immune system. In lupus, the immune defense turns against the body’s own tissues such as skin, joints, liver, heart, lung, kidneys and brain.
As it attacks certain areas of the body and causes varied symptoms, it can sometimes be confused and its diagnosis delayed .
Lupus requires careful treatment by medical specialists. People who are treated the right way can lead a normal life. Those that are not treated end up having serious complications, which can often lead to death.
How to Prepare for Pregnancy With Lupus?
In order for the question of whether someone with lupus can become pregnant is an affirmative one, some steps must be taken. A healthy pregnancy starts well before it happens . Therefore, it is important that you:
- Make sure your lupus is under control and – The healthier you are before you become pregnant, the greater your chance of having a healthy pregnancy and baby. Pregnancy overloads the kidneys , so having an active kidney disease can cause problems, and can even lead to an abortion. So, if possible, avoid becoming pregnant until your lupus has been under control for at least six months.
- Talk to your doctor about your medication – Some medications are safe to take during pregnancy. Others, however, can harm the baby . The doctor may need to stop or change some medications before pregnancy. Some of them need to be stopped months before conception.
- Choose a high-risk pregnancy specialist – As lupus can present certain risks, you need an obstetrician who has experience with high-risk pregnancies and who is in a hospital prepared for this type of situation. If possible, seek this professional before becoming pregnant.
- Keep an eye on health plan coverage – An inadequate health plan can prevent you and your baby from getting the treatment they need. Make sure that your health plan covers your health needs and those of your baby, as well as any problems that may arise.
How to Manage Any Pregnancy Problems?
Regular prenatal examinations are important for all women. But they are especially important for women with lupus. This is because many potential problems can be prevented or treated better if they are addressed in advance.
Here are some problems that can occur during pregnancy:
Seizures – Some women report improvement in lupus symptoms during pregnancy. But crises during pregnancy occur in up to 30% of women. Periods of increased disease activity occur most frequently during the first few months after delivery. That is why it is important to wait to become pregnant until the disease has been controlled for at least six months, as it reduces the risk of seizures during pregnancy. Most crises, when they occur, are mild. The doctor can treat them with low doses of corticosteroids.
Hypertensive complications – Complications involving high blood pressure can affect up to 20% of pregnant women with lupus. High blood pressure can be caused by pregnancy and can increase the risk of pre-eclampsia. Preeclampsia occurs in every 5 women with lupus and requires immediate treatment.
Miscarriage – Approximately one in five pregnant women with lupus undergoes a miscarriage. Spontaneous abortions are more likely in women with high blood pressure, active lupus and active kidney disease.
Premature delivery – About one in three women with lupus has premature delivery. This means that the baby will be able to be born before reaching 37 weeks. That is why it is important to know the symptoms of premature birth, which may include:
- Backache
- Pelvic pressure
- Loss of blood or clear liquid through the vagina
- Abdominal cramps
- Contractions that occur every 10 minutes or less
Seek medical help as soon as possible if you experience any of these symptoms.
If you have lupus, you can get pregnant, but you have a higher risk of pregnancy complications. However, their babies can be born as healthy as those of women who do not have the condition!
Care During Pregnancy With Lupus
In addition to visiting the doctor regularly and following the treatment plan, there are many things you can do to take care of yourself and your baby while you wait for him to arrive:
- Get plenty of rest . Plan a good night’s sleep and take breaks throughout the day.
- Have a healthy diet . Avoid gaining weight. Ask your doctor to refer you to a nutritionist, if necessary.
- Avoid cigarettes and alcoholic beverages.
- If you experience unusual symptoms, speak to the doctor immediately.
How to Manage Baby Birth?
The doctor will decide the method of delivery – cesarean or vaginal. He will do this taking into account the health of the woman and also the health of the baby at the time of delivery.
Many women with lupus can have vaginal deliveries , but if the mother or baby is under stress, a cesarean section may be the safest and fastest way to deliver.
If a woman took steroids during pregnancy, the doctor may increase the dose during labor to help the body deal with additional stress.
Often, even if the delivery goes perfectly well, women with the condition experience severe attacks of lupus soon after the baby is born.
So too, other problems can occur after delivery, and include:
- Breastfeeding problems – Babies born prematurely may not be strong enough to breastfeed and express breast milk. Mothers who have had premature births or are taking certain medications may have problems producing milk. In addition, some of them need to take medications that can pass through the milk and are advised not to breastfeed. Most of these problems can be resolved. It is important to speak to the doctor if you have any questions about breastfeeding.
- Neonatal lupus – Neonatal lupus is not the same as lupus in the mother. About 3% of babies born to women with lupus will have the condition. Most of the time it is transitory, which means it will pass. The condition consists of the presence of autoantibodies from the mother in the circulation in the baby, the result of transplacental transmission . By the time the baby is 6 or 8 months old, the condition usually goes away and never returns. In rare cases, babies with neonatal lupus will have an abnormal heart rhythm that is permanent and may require a pacemaker.
After birth, it is important that you make regular visits to the doctor to monitor the changes that occur in your body. Check how it recovers and returns to how it was before pregnancy. Although you are focused on taking care of the baby, if you don’t have time to worry about your health remember that it is very important to take care of yourself .
See also: Hormone Replacement Therapy: Benefits and Consequences
My name is Dr. Alexis Hart I am 38 years old, I am the mother of 3 beautiful children! Different ages, different phases 16 years, 12 years and 7 years. In love with motherhood since always, I found it difficult to make my dreams come true, and also some more after I was already a mother.
Since I imagined myself as a mother, in my thoughts everything seemed to be much easier and simpler than it really was, I expected to get pregnant as soon as I wished, but it wasn’t that simple. The first pregnancy was smooth, but my daughter’s birth was very troubled. Joana was born in 2002 with a weight of 2930kg and 45cm, from a very peaceful cesarean delivery but she had already been born with congenital pneumonia due to a broken bag not treated with antibiotics even before delivery.
