Contents:
- Medical Video: Thalassemia: Why pre-pregnancy and prenatal tests are crucial
- Does pregnancy with thalassemia adversely affect the fetus and mother?
- What treatment is done if pregnant with thalassemia?
- Will thalassemia in pregnancy have an impact on the delivery process later?
- Are children born later already certain to experience thalassemia too?
Medical Video: Thalassemia: Why pre-pregnancy and prenatal tests are crucial
Thalassemia is a disorder of blood derivatives that makes a person unable to produce protein in the blood (hemoglobin). This makes people with thalassemia at risk of experiencing a lack of blood until anemia. So, what if a woman with thalassemia is pregnant? Will thalassemia in pregnancy affect the condition of the mother and fetus? Can mothers who get pregnant with thalassemia give birth normally? What should be considered? Consider the following review.
Does pregnancy with thalassemia adversely affect the fetus and mother?
Usually, people with thalassemia need regular blood transfusions. This is because this disease makes the patient unable to produce hemoglobin which carries oxygen and food in the blood. This condition can be a big problem for the health of the mother and fetus. The following are conditions that can be experienced by women with thalassemia that need to be considered before and during pregnancy:
- Cardiomyopathy
- Diabetes mellitus
- Hypothyroidism
- Hypoparathyroidism
- Osteporosis
Meanwhile, the health of the fetus can also be disrupted. The risks faced by babies when their mothers get pregnant with thalassemia are:
- Impaired growth
- Low birth weight
- Born disabled
- Spina bifida
Even so, not necessarily the mother with thalassemia will experience these things. Therefore, thalassemia in pregnancy must always be monitored.
What treatment is done if pregnant with thalassemia?
There was no difference in treatment for women with thalassemia and who were pregnant with women who were not pregnant with thalassemia. The treatment depends on the type of thalassemia suffered, you may get regular drinking medication to have to do a blood transfusion regularly.
You need to do routine blood transfusion if you have alpha thalassemia, because this type of thalassemia will make you experience chronic anemia. Meanwhile, if you have beta thalassemia, the treatment given will be more varied.
Mothers who are pregnant with thalassemia should also consume more folic acid supplements to prevent the risk of spina bifida in infants when they are born. Folic acid needed for women with thalassemia is around 5 mg per day. In fact, this supplement has been recommended when you have started planning to get pregnant. To know when exactly you can take this supplement, discuss it with your doctor.
In addition, prenatal care must also be carried out regularly and more often. Doctors recommend ultrasound earlier, when 7-9 gestational age. When the pregnancy enters the age of 18 weeks, you are advised to do fetal biometry every 4 weeks until the gestational age reaches 24 weeks.
Will thalassemia in pregnancy have an impact on the delivery process later?
You can still give birth normally (through the vagina). If indeed your condition and the fetus are fine, then there is no need for a caesarean section. Thalassemia in pregnancy is not a sign that you must have a caesarean section later.
There is no special procedure that is carried out when the labor is carried out. This will be adjusted to your condition and the fetus. However, women with thalassemia are at risk of developing heart dysfunction and have a very low amount of hemoglobin during labor.
However, don't be afraid, doctors will certainly try to minimize the risks that occur during labor. If you have your own fears, discuss it with your doctor before the birth day comes.
Are children born later already certain to experience thalassemia too?
Given that thalassemia is a genetic or hereditary disease, it is possible that your child will experience this blood disorder as well. However, this depends on the type of gene that he is carrying. It could be that your child is only limited to the "carrier" of the thalassemia gene, that is, there is a thalassemia gene in his body but is not active, so that the child is only a carrier of genes.
Meanwhile, it does not rule out the possibility that he will inherit thalassemia directly - not just carrying a gene - if this happens, then it's best to immediately check your baby's pediatrician.
