Chronic ilnesses during pregnancy
There are certain chronic illnesses and diseases that can cause complications during a woman's pregnancy. In the past it was recommended that women who suffered from certain illnesses refrain from pregnancy. Fortunately, the advances in healthcare have shown that women can still have successful pregnancies and deliveries, even with chronic illnesses.

If you suffer from asthma there is no way of telling if your symptoms will get better or worse. Statistics show that approximately half of all women that suffer from asthma have no change in their asthma symptoms during pregnancy. However, 25% notice that their symptoms worsen and yet another 25% say that their symptoms actually improve during their pregnancy. Try to avoid the substances that make your asthma worse. Ask your doctor about your medication before stopping or starting while you are pregnant.

Women that have cancer and are being treated should avoid pregnancy. Cancer treatments are made to destroy rapidly dividing cells and the treatment may mistake the fetus as a cell. This could cause birth defects, miscarriage or even stillbirth. Unforunately, some women will learn that they have cancer at the start of their pregnancy. If this happens, your doctor may suggest that the pregnany be terminated so that treatment can begin.

Because of the advances in modern medicine, women that already have diabetes can usually have a successful pregnancy with the proper care. There are extra risks involved when a pregnant mother has diabetes. It is important that your doctor take into consideration the medications that are being taken to control the condition. Some medications do have to be changed or discontinued during pregnancy. If kidney damage is a problem from the diabetes, pregnancy can often make the damage worse.

There are approximately 800,000 women of childbearing age living with epilepsy. If you are epileptic, there are additional concerns regarding pregnancy. Because of the convulsions that occur with epilepsy, it is important that women do not stop their medications. However, the medications are not safe to use during pregnancy and pose a great threat to a developing baby. Minor birth defects to fetal death have occured. If you have been seizure free for quite some time, you may not need to take the medicine during your pregnancy.

Many women that have lupus are concerned with the risks involved with pregnancy. In the past, it was recommended that women with lupus avoid pregnancy and terminate if conception were to occur. While 50% of all lupus pregnancies have minimal or no complications, another 50% result in premature delivery or miscarriage/stillbirth. Women that suffer from lupus and have central nervous system, heart, lung or kidney involvement are still generally discouraged from becoming pregnant. Mos women that have lupus will be placed in a high risk category because of the increased liklihood of developing complications during pregnancy. Often times, antibodies can cause blood clots in the placenta and this can result in miscarriage because the baby can not devleop properly. Like any medications, you should discuss your medicines with your caregiver if you are pregnancy or intend to become pregnant.

Women that suffer from multiple sclerosis do not have to worry about their condition during pregnancy. Research shows that being pregnant does not have any adverse effects with the condition. Because there is a wide variety and severity levels of symptoms for multiple sclerosis, it is important to consider how and if you will be able to care for a child. For some, the disease can help with flare-ups during the pregnancy. However, for the first six months after delivery you will want to take special precautions because this is the most likely time for flare ups.

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http://www.i-am-pregnant.com/encyclopedia/Pregnancy/Chronic-Illness