Asthma
- Complications: antepartum and postpartum hemorrhage, pulmonary embolism,
miscarriage
- Treatment: optimize control + limit exacerbations.
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... [Show More] Encourage: take their asthma medications, stop smoking, and evaluate asthma
exacerbations with continuous pulse oximetry
- While dyspnea is common, an asthma exacerbation may be recognized by
dyspnea w wheezing or cough.
- Asthma Attacks S/s: dyspnea, chest tightness, cough, wheezing, tachypnea, low
O2
Epilepsy
- Children of mothers with epilepsy are at increased risk for developing a seizure
disorder
- Complications: preeclampsia, preterm labor, and fetal death
- Increased risk of congenital anomalies w antiseizure meds during their pregnancy
- Take anti seizure meds despite risks to fetus and to avoid individual seizure
triggers
- Women on anti seizure meds should take 4 mg folic acid daily beginning 3
months before conception
- Infants of mothers who take anti seizure meds are at increased risk for bleeding.A pregnant woman with an asthma exacerbation tells the nurse she stopped taking
her medication because she didn't want it to affect her baby. What is the best
response by the nurse?
"You should still take your asthma medication while you are pregnant to help
control your asthma."
Asthma treatment goals during pregnancy are to optimize control and limit
exacerbations. Asthma improves during pregnancy in some woman and gets worse
with others. The patient should continue taking medications as ordered during her
pregnancy, regardless if she experiences an exacerbation.
Hypothyroidism
- S/s: fatigue, weight gain, constipation, sensitivity cold
- Maternal can cause preeclampsia, gestational HTN, postpartum hemorrhage,
early pregnancy loss, preterm delivery, low birth weight
- Fetal: Cognitive impairment and neuropsychological risk higher in 1st Trimester
- Treatment incudes levothyroxine (a T4 replacement), adjusted based on TSH
levels every 4 weeks to 3 months
- Medication dose adjustments are typically required more frequently in early
pregnancy than in later pregnancy
- Women should be taught to take levothyroxine first thing in the morning and on
an empty stomach with no further oral intake for one hour. [Show Less]