More on Medications in Pregnancy
Last week, I talked about drugs and medications in pregnancy including over-the-counter remedies, birth control pills accidentally taken while pregnant, and epilepsy medicine. This week I will touch on high blood pressure medications, psychiatric drugs and herbal remedies. As I’ve said before, there are many books devoted to this topic and each medication comes with a packet of information, including facts about its effects in pregnancy.
High blood pressure is pretty common in pregnancy and there are a number of medications used to treat it. A category of drugs called ACE inhibitors should not be taken at any time during pregnancy. When taken in the first trimester, ACE inhibitors may cause malformation of the baby’s kidneys. Taken in the second and third trimester, it can cause the baby’s kidneys to shut down entirely. Read the rest of this entry »