Antibiotics During Pregnancy
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Antibiotics During Pregnancy
Dec 2006
Hello, I am in the 9th week of my pregnancy, and my doctor put
me on antibiotics (metronidazole). I am supposed to use the
medication twice a day for 7 days. He said I shouldn't worry
about it but I am very concerned about this especially since it
happened during the first trimester. I have already started
taking the medication so I cannot stop right now but I can't
stop worrying that something will happen to the baby either. I
would appreciate any information, adivice whatsoever on this
matter. Many thanks.
I also took antibiotics when I was around 9 weeks pregnant. It was a
diff. medication, but everything turned out fine. I was also very
hesitant, but my family doctor who is very conservative with medication
said it was important rather than letting my infection get out of
control at that stage of a pregnancy. I also checked the medication and
dose with my OB- GYN and they also reassured me, saying it's one of the
ones they regularly give women with breast infections while they're
breastfeeding of pregnant. By the time you get this you'll probably
have already had to decide whether to stick with it or not, but for what
it's worth I used antibiotics at that stage and had no issues anon
Metronidazole is contraindicated (not recommended) in the first
trimester. In later pregnancy, it is used to treat bacterial vaginosis
(BV) -- a relatively benign bacterial infection that can be associated
with preterm labor and is therefore treated during pregnancy. However,
in the first trimester, it is usually treated with MetroGel, a vaginal
cream with minimal absorption into the bloodstream. Unfortunately, by
the time you read this, you may have already finished the Rx. If you
haven't, and you are being treated for BV, I think it is fine to stop
the oral metronidazole and either ask for MetroGel or wait until your
second trimester to be treated. If you have finished it, I don't think
there is a huge worry. Most recent studies do not show an increase in
birth defects associated with taking metronidazole in early pregnancy.
Check out this information:
http://www.otispregnancy.org/pdf/Flagyl.pdf
Nurse Practitioner
My ob/gyn once told me that the anxiety that women put themselves
through over what they did before finding out they were pregnant
(drinking, smoking, etc.) can be worse than the actual cause of anxiety
itself. I think that the same thing applies to you. I had a very clean
first pregnancy (very little sugar, no soda, alcohol, maybe 2 tylenol,
etc.) and was worried about taking antibiotics TWICE during my second
pregnancy. I checked on the ''safeness'' of the specific drug w/ both
my primary & my ob/gyn. Then I reminded myself that I simply could not
cope w/ the pain of a sinus infection. And if it had been left alone,
it could turn into a more systemic problem that would definitely affect
the baby's health. Heal yourself & try to relax!
Paula
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