Prescribing change, expecting more
“The data gap around pregnant women and medication is a huge problem,” says Dr. Christina Chambers, Professor of Pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego. “Lack of sufficient data leads to treatment decisions with no evidence base, and in some cases to avoidance of needed medication or to under-treatment. This can lead to complications because there is fear on…
Read more > Long-term monitoring studies could be answer to pregnancy & medication data gaps
Roxanne Davenport from Lewisville, North Carolina, US, began having complex petit mal seizures when she was 21. She now copes with mesial temporal sclerosis, has two daughters and works as an epilepsy advocate as well as moderating the Google+ Epilepsy Support Community. Here, Roxanne shares the challenges she faced during pregnancy. During my first pregnancy, I was only on one…
Read more > Two successful pregnancies for epilepsy advocate
Progress in diagnosing and treating cancer patients is accelerating. Cancer Research UK recently announced that “half of new UK cancer patients can expect to live for another decade.” This means having a family is now within reach for many more individuals, requiring a different approach to disease management, which takes into account important aspects such as fertility, pregnancy, breastfeeding, and…
Read more > Could more cancer patients consider having a family?
A leading figure in the battle to increase awareness about treating pregnant women, Dr. Gideon Koren believes urgent changes are needed in the field. He is the founder of Motherisk, an organization providing information and counseling on pregnancy and medication, staff pediatrician at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and professor at the University of Toronto. The Pregnancy &…
I decided that I would rather struggle with anxiety than worry I was potentially harming the baby by staying on my medication. I am not judgmental of women who decide otherwise, but weaning off my medication was the best individual decision for me. I was so grateful and surprised that I felt better than ever during my pregnancy (even better…
Read more > Managing mental illness in pregnancy with support and self-awareness
Across the globe, slowly but surely, improving treatments and information for pregnant women who are HIV positive are having an impact. The success can be measured in two ways: first, the number of pregnant women who have access to HIV testing and treatment is rising worldwide; second, the prevention of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV is increasing in effectiveness. There…
Michelle and Kirstin, who both have rheumatoid arthritis, share their struggles and challenges during pregnancy. Michelle Braithwaite, 46, from Selby, UK I got my diagnosis when I was 19 and quickly went downhill from there. My rheumatoid was quite aggressive and would come and go in flare-ups. When I got to 35, my husband and I knew it was our…
Read more > Rheumatoid arthritis shouldn’t be a barrier to having children
