Interesting Facts 

I drank antibiotics without knowing that I was pregnant. Pregnancy and taking antibiotics in the early stages: appointment and list of approved drugs

Pregnancy is a paradoxical condition. On the one hand, a woman's immunity is so weakened that she is susceptible to many dangerous diseases, on the other hand, at this time, all the drugs that treat these diseases are prohibited. Antibiotics are a prime example of this. Some of them provoke pathologies of intrauterine development of the fetus, therefore, they are categorically contraindicated for expectant mothers. Others are approved by the Ministry of Health for use during pregnancy, although there is always a certain risk. But one cannot do without antibacterial drugs: the activity of harmful microorganisms can only be suppressed with their help.

The danger of drugs with an antibacterial spectrum of action is that their active substances change metabolic processes at the cellular level, hence all the prerequisites for the appearance of children with disabilities. At the same time, almost every second woman is faced with the need to undergo antibiotic therapy in a position where this or that disease threatens her and her baby. The most undesirable is the intake of such drugs, if very little time has passed after conception.

Antibiotics during early pregnancy pose a great danger to the life of the embryo, in which at this time the most important vital organs and systems are being formed, in fact, the "foundation" of the human body is being laid. It is highly undesirable to interfere with this process from 3 to 6 weeks of pregnancy. However, even in this case, taking antibacterial drugs may be justified: pregnancy significantly weakens a woman's immunity, as a result of which all chronic diseases are naturally exacerbated in her. Sometimes the expectant mother is forced to take antibiotics not only at an early stage, but also during the entire pregnancy, right up to the birth of the child. Some serious illness, for example, chronic pyelonephritis, may oblige her to do this. The course of this disease must be constantly monitored, and in this case the woman has no choice, since antibiotics for her are a guarantee of maintaining the pregnancy.

Features of taking antibiotics early

The antibacterial drug, which is approved for use in pregnant women, has passed more than one clinical trial before hitting the shelves of pharmacies. In testing such drugs, animals are involved first, then volunteers. An antibiotic is only given the green light for use during pregnancy after scientists have been scientifically proven to be safe. The Ministry of Health of our country controls the production and testing of antibacterial drugs for the treatment of pregnancy with special care, since negligence in this matter can cause catastrophic consequences.

Prescribing an antibiotic to a pregnant patient, the doctor acts according to a clear scheme: he takes into account the specifics of the woman's disease and the duration of her pregnancy, calculates the safest duration of treatment, and determines the sensitivity of microorganisms to the drug.

The effect of antibiotics on early pregnancy can be called positive, based only on the effectiveness of its effect on the causative agents of the disease for which the pregnant woman is being treated. Otherwise, the effect of such a drug affects the condition of the expectant mother negatively:

  • there is an oppression of the healthy microflora of the body;
  • disorders of the gastrointestinal tract may occur;
  • there is a possibility of developing thrush;
  • there is a risk of an embryotoxic effect, which is expressed in the suppression of the formation of the kidneys of the fetus, the auditory nerve, and the laying of its teeth.

Obviously, only a person who has the necessary knowledge and legal right, that is, a doctor, can take responsibility for treating the expectant mother with such drugs. Information from the instructions for use, even very detailed, is not enough for a woman to prescribe antibiotics for herself on her own. Suppose an antibacterial drug has passed all laboratory tests, scientists were satisfied with the results of this work and recognized the drug as safe for treatment during pregnancy. The drug went on a wide sale, and after a while, when a large group of expectant mothers began to take the antibiotic, rare, previously unknown side effects appeared that posed a threat to the woman and her child. The drug, of course, is banned and removed from sale, and doctors find out about it before they sell all the boxes of these pills (or any other dosage form), which has a shelf life of 3 years. The conclusion is simple: a doctor is the only reliable source for obtaining truthful information and competent treatment.

Another common and unforgivable mistake of expectant mothers is that some unknowingly consider antibiotics a panacea for all diseases, and therefore take them for diseases that cannot be cured with antibacterial drugs in principle.

Note! ARI, ARVI, influenza, intestinal disorders, high fever and pain are pathological conditions in which antibiotics are powerless.

Indications for the use of antibiotics in early pregnancy

The benefits of taking antibacterial drugs outweigh the potential health risks for mom and baby with such diseases:

  1. Gestational pyelonephritis.
  2. Pneumonia.
  3. Acute tonsillitis.
  4. Bronchitis.
  5. Sinusitis.
  6. Rheumatism.
  7. All severe intestinal infections.
  8. Extensive burns.
  9. Festering wounds.
  10. Serious complications of an infectious nature (blood poisoning).
  11. Diseases caused by specific bacteria (brucellosis).

Permitted antibacterial drugs for pregnant women

Numerous studies have convinced specialists that the effect of antibiotics does not apply to the formation of a child's genetic and hereditary apparatus and is not related to the appearance of congenital malformations. Nevertheless, some of the consequences of antibiotics in the early stages of pregnancy in a baby can still be: deafness, malformations of bone tissue, tooth enamel, etc.

At the beginning of pregnancy, all medicines are prescribed with great care. Among antibacterial drugs, the greatest confidence, as practice has shown, was won by drugs of the penicillin series. These include Amoxicillin, Ampicillin, Amoxiclav, Oxacillin. Even with their long-term use, you can not worry about the intrauterine development of the fetus. However, drugs of a penicillin nature also have certain disadvantages. For example, some pathogenic microbes are highly resistant to penicillin. This means that treatment with such antibiotics may not bring the expected effect.

In case of urgent need, the doctor, after preliminary weighing all the pros and cons, can build a course of treatment for a pregnant woman based on antibacterial drugs belonging to the cefazolin group (Cefazolin, Ceftriaxone, Ceftazadim, etc.) They penetrate the placenta in minimal quantities. Cefazolins are prescribed in the treatment of serious diseases such as bilateral pneumonia. At the same time, the doctor will always try to minimize the negative effects of antibiotics. So, for diseases of the ears, nose and throat, it is advisable to prescribe an antibacterial drug for local treatment. By the way, Bioparox medicinal aerosol is absolutely safe at any stage of pregnancy.

The antibiotics Josamycin and Spiromycin were also not found to have a pathogenic effect on the fetus.
The list of antibiotics approved for use in the second half of pregnancy is increasing, but they can also be taken exclusively as directed by the attending physician.

Prohibited antibiotics for pregnant women

  1. Gentamicin causes congenital deafness in a baby.
  2. Reception of Tetracycline and Doxycycline turns into poisoning of the liver of the fetus, as well as the accumulation of toxic substances in its bones.
  3. The active ingredients of Ciprofloxacin, Ciprolet and Nolitsin destroy the joints of the fetus, regardless of the gestational age.
  4. The action of Furagin, Furamag and Ersefuril has negative consequences for all organs and systems of the fetus as a whole.
  5. Levomycetin and other drugs based on this active substance are dangerous to take because of their detrimental effect on the development of the child's bone marrow and disturbances in the process of hematopoiesis.
  6. Dioxidine causes various mutations and malformations in the development of the fetus.
  7. Biseptol interferes with the timely development of the child, and also increases the likelihood of the formation of various anomalies.

Taking antibiotics early in pregnancy before delay

In medical practice, there are many cases when a woman underwent antibiotic treatment without knowing that she was pregnant. One can only guess how upset the expectant mother will be when she discovers the delay and finds out the reason for it. However, one should not despair: the chances of having a healthy baby without deviations in this case are quite high.

In the first weeks after fertilization, there is still no close connection between the embryo and the maternal organism, therefore, the use of antibacterial drugs from the permitted group may not affect its development in any way. But the influence of prohibited antibiotics affects the state of the embryo much more - pregnancy can stop developing (become frozen) or end in spontaneous miscarriage.

How should a woman behave in such a situation? It is necessary to immediately stop taking the antibacterial drug and take a wait and see attitude. If the medicine has managed to cause irreparable damage to the embryonic cells, the pregnancy will terminate itself. If the future child is strong enough to survive, then in the future, most likely, he will develop normally, without any deviations.

To confirm or deny a frozen pregnancy, you need to donate blood for a hCG test over a period of time. Identical indicators of all tests indicate a halt in the growth and development of the fetus. Another diagnostic method for detecting a missed pregnancy is an ultrasound scan for a period not exceeding 4 weeks.

In no case should a hasty decision be made about the artificial termination of pregnancy, since in the first weeks after conception the situation will resolve itself: the child will either die or survive and be absolutely healthy. Anomalies of development under the influence of antibiotics develop, as a rule, at a later stage of intrauterine development, when the laying of organs and systems is in full swing.

Let's answer another pressing question that often worries pregnant women - what happens if at the time of conception the baby's father was treated with antibacterial drugs? There is nothing to worry about in such a situation, since antibiotics absolutely do not affect the quality of sperm, and even more so they cannot cause the development of abnormalities in the unborn child.

Planning a pregnancy after taking antibiotics

If a woman becomes pregnant immediately after the end of the course of treatment with antibacterial drugs, then a certain danger for the unborn child is not the very fact of taking dangerous drugs, but the infection that they were treating. Some infectious diseases and pregnancy are mutually exclusive concepts.

Planning a pregnancy immediately after antibiotic treatment is not recommended - you need to wait at least 1 - 2 months to get stronger and gain strength for the upcoming test.
Antibiotics, which were prescribed during treatment, cannot have a negative effect on the embryo, since the body will have time to remove them before conception, but a weakened immune system will not give a woman a chance for a pleasant and easy pregnancy.

Medicines and pregnancy. Video

Any medications that a woman uses during pregnancy can negatively affect her unborn child. And, of course, antibiotics are no exception.

There are antibiotics, the use of which during pregnancy is categorically contraindicated, since they can provoke fetal anomalies. But still, statistics show that about 50% of women take antibacterial drugs during pregnancy, because very often it is simply impossible to treat this or that pathology in other ways.

Let's take a closer look at whether there are antibiotics that are not dangerous for pregnant women, and in what cases they can be used during pregnancy.

Antibiotics and pregnancy planning

It often happens when, after an illness and a course of antibiotic therapy, a woman finds out that she is pregnant. As a rule, such a pregnancy has risks that are not so much associated with the use of drugs, but also with the transferred infection. Of course, in this case, a doctor's consultation is necessary.

  • Do not rush to plan a pregnancy after a course of antibiotic treatment, because after an illness, the body must necessarily recover. It is better to postpone conception for a while so that you have the opportunity to fully recover and get stronger.
  • Don't worry if you got pregnant while you were taking antibiotics. The medications that entered the woman's body before the delay will not affect the condition of the fetus, but you need to strengthen the body well after the illness.
  • Pregnancy itself is a factor that can significantly weaken a woman's immunity, as a result of which a severe course of acute diseases and an exacerbation of chronic pathology are possible. Because of this, it becomes necessary to take antibacterial drugs.
  • In some cases, the entire pregnancy can take place while taking antibiotics, for example, if a woman in an interesting position suffers from chronic pyelonephritis. Then there is no other way out, and the use of an antibiotic is a vital necessity.

Antibiotics in early pregnancy

In the early stages of pregnancy, antibacterial agents have very strict restrictions on their use. The safest antibiotics of the penicillin series. Even if long-term use is necessary at the beginning of pregnancy, they do not cause deviations in the development of the child.

But their disadvantage is that many microorganisms have developed resistance to them, therefore, when treating some diseases with drugs of this group, it may not have the desired effect. In early pregnancy, especially in the first month, antibacterial agents are prescribed with extreme caution.

If there is no other way out, and the expected benefit from using the drug outweighs the possible risk, the doctor may recommend antibiotics of the cephalosporin group to the expectant mother. They are usually prescribed exclusively for severe pathology, for example, if a pregnant woman becomes ill with pneumonia.

In the case of ENT pathology in the first half of pregnancy, it is advisable to use antibiotics locally. For example, a drug such as Bioparox is safe at any time. If you are in the 1st trimester of pregnancy, take medication seriously for any medical condition.

Choosing an antibiotic for a pregnant woman

When choosing which antibiotic should be prescribed to a pregnant woman, the doctor must be guided not only by whether it can be taken or not, but also by the duration of pregnancy, the specific disease in the woman, the necessary timing of the use of the drug, as well as the sensitivity of microorganisms.

An expectant mother can use antibiotics only when it is unavoidable, because even the safest can have a depressing effect on their own normal microflora, provoke the development of thrush, can cause gastrointestinal disorders and other troubles.

Therefore, it is necessary to use antibiotics for pregnant women only after a doctor's prescription. Even if you think that the instructions for the drug will be enough, and you can make your own choice of a safe antibiotic, then this is an erroneous opinion. The choice of medication is based not only on annotations.

In addition, over time, its content becomes obsolete, that is, as a result of the tests passed, the antibiotic was recognized as safe and began to be widely used, but after being taken by a large group of pregnant women, it turned out that it has, although rare, but rather dangerous side effects.

Therefore, the drug was banned. The doctor becomes aware of this before the pharmacies can sell all the boxes of the medicine, which has a shelf life of several years.

Consequences of using antibiotics during pregnancy

Antibiotics that are allowed during pregnancy are not harmful to the expectant mother. But if she gets sick, unaware of her situation, the doctor can prescribe any drugs to his patient, not knowing about her pregnancy.

If a woman underwent antibiotic treatment in the first week, even taking a dangerous drug, there may not be any consequences for the baby, because all harmful factors in the early stages act on the "all or nothing" principle. Thus, the embryo may die, or an absolutely healthy baby will be born. But if the expectant mother took antibacterial drugs after the 3rd week of pregnancy, when a connection has already formed between her body and the embryo, serious consequences can be expected.

What antibiotics are categorically contraindicated for pregnant women? Almost everything, with the exception of penicillins, macrolides and cephalosporins. But still, the harm of antibiotics is not always inevitable during pregnancy. If you, not knowing that you are pregnant, took one of the dangerous drugs at an early stage, carefully consider the first scheduled ultrasound scan, which is carried out at 10-11 weeks.

In most cases, at this time, serious, large malformations are successfully detected and the pregnancy can be terminated. If the expectant mother took antibacterial drugs after 12-14 weeks of pregnancy, there is no longer a risk of serious developmental anomalies. It must be remembered that many antibiotics in later stages can cause small deviations from the norm, which in the future can worsen the quality of life of the baby.

Do not forget that any antibiotic is a drug that can suppress the vital activity of another microorganism. All antibacterial agents are divided into synthetic, biosynthetic and semi-synthetic. In addition, they have a narrow and wide spectrum of action, which differs in the number of microorganisms that are sensitive to them.

Considering how antibiotics affect the fetus, it is necessary to pay attention to their ability to penetrate the placental barrier, toxicity, as well as the ability to cause malformations and developmental defects in the fetus.

Penicillins there are both semi-synthetic and natural origin. Synthetic include ampicillin, amoxicillin, carbenicillin, oxacillin. Among biosynthetic ones, penicillin, benzylpenicillin can be distinguished. Such drugs have no effect on the development of the fetus and are safe for it. Therefore, if necessary, a woman can take them throughout the pregnancy or when planning it.

Cephalosporins- this group of drugs includes such as cefazolin, ceftriaxone, cefuroxime. They are characterized by the ability to pass through the placental barrier without exerting teratogenic effects, therefore, if necessary, expectant mothers can use them.

Macrolide group preparations- these include clarithromycin, azithromycin, rovamycin. During pregnancy, they can be used without fear of adverse effects on the fetus.

Aminoglycosides- representatives of this group - amikacin, neomycin, gentamicin have an adverse effect on the hearing aid and the kidneys of the fetus. Therefore, as a result of their use by the expectant mother, the child may experience congenital deafness or kidney pathology.

Tetracyclines- these include tetracycline, doxycycline. This group of drugs in the body of the fetus disrupts mineral metabolism and can cause the destruction of the enamel of tooth rudiments, they are also toxic to the liver.

Fluoroquinolones(abaktal, floxal, ciprofloxacin) can cause malformations of bone and cartilage tissue in a child.

Nitrofurans are chemotherapy synthetic drugs. Women are often used to treat urethritis or cystitis. This group includes furazolidone, furadonin. Such drugs can disrupt the formation of the organs of the excretory system in the fetus, as well as their functioning. Therefore, you should avoid taking them in the first and third trimester of pregnancy.

Cases when taking antibiotics during pregnancy is necessary:

  • septic, purulent-inflammatory diseases;
  • bronchitis, sinusitis, pneumonia, complicated;
  • exacerbation of chronic pathology of the genitourinary system;
  • rheumatism;
  • acute intestinal infections;
  • another pathology provoked by the activity of pathogenic bacteria.

Now you are aware of the dangers of antibiotics for pregnant women and their possible effect on the fetus. We hope that after reading this article, you will be able to avoid mistakes without resorting to self-medication.

Medicines during pregnancy, including antibiotics, can pose a threat to the health of the unborn child.

Some antibiotics during pregnancy are categorically contraindicated, as they can cause developmental abnormalities, deafness and disability of the baby. Interfering with metabolic processes at the cell level, these substances, on the one hand, prevent the reproduction of pathogenic microbes, and on the other hand, can disrupt the development of the fetus.

Despite the danger, antibiotics during pregnancy have to be taken by every second woman, because the question arises between the risk to the child and the benefit to both, and the scales tilt towards the need for such treatment.

Taking antibiotics during pregnancy is especially dangerous in the early stages, in the first trimester, when the baby's organs and systems are being laid. The maximum negative effect of antibiotics on pregnancy is possible in the first weeks, the consequences can be catastrophic.

And yet, pregnancy in itself is a factor that significantly weakens a woman's immunity, which leads to an exacerbation of chronic diseases and a severe course of acute diseases, which forces the use of antimicrobial drugs. In some diseases, the entire pregnancy takes place against the background of antibiotics, for example, if the expectant mother has chronic pyelonephritis. There is simply no way out in such cases, and taking antibiotics becomes a vital necessity.

Antibiotics during pregnancy, treatment

Antibiotics allowed during pregnancy, before the entry "allowed for use during pregnancy" appeared in the annotation to the drug, underwent mass tests, first on animals, and then on volunteers. That is, they are all tested and approved by specialists after their safety has been proven. The use of antibiotics during pregnancy is especially strictly monitored by the Ministry of Health, since the thoughtless prescription of drugs can lead to fatal consequences.

When choosing which antibiotics should be prescribed for a particular woman during pregnancy, doctors are guided not only by whether the antibiotic is allowed or not, but also by what kind of disease the pregnant woman has, what the timing of the drug will need, the sensitivity of microorganisms, and, of course, the duration of pregnancy ...

An expectant mother can drink antibiotics during pregnancy in any case only in a situation where this cannot be avoided, since even the safest of antibiotics inhibit their own normal microflora, lead to a disorder of the gastrointestinal tract, provoke thrush, and in general, lead to many troubles.

Antibiotic treatment during pregnancy should be done strictly as directed by your doctor. If you think that the instructions for the drug will be enough for you and that you can independently choose safe antibiotics during pregnancy, you are deeply mistaken. The choice of a medicine is based not only on the annotation, moreover, sometimes the content of the annotation becomes outdated, that is, the antibiotic was tested, it was recognized as safe, and began to be widely used, but when used on a very large group of pregnant women it suddenly turned out that it has rare but dangerous side effects, and the drug was banned. The doctor will find out about this before they sell all the boxes with the medicine with a shelf life of three years.

In what cases it becomes necessary to take antibiotics during pregnancy:

- purulent-inflammatory, septic diseases
- complicated ARVI, pneumonia, bronchitis, sinusitis
- rheumatism
- exacerbation of chronic diseases of the kidneys and genitourinary system
- acute intestinal infections
- other diseases caused by the activity of pathogenic bacteria

The use of antibiotics during pregnancy is especially dangerous in the first weeks.

Antibiotics for early pregnancy

Antibiotics in early pregnancy have the most stringent restrictions on their use. Only a group of penicillin antibiotics is considered relatively safe, these are amoxicillin, amoxiclav and the like. These antibiotics at the beginning of pregnancy, even with prolonged use, do not cause deviations in the development of the child, however, their disadvantage is that many microorganisms are resistant to them, that is, these antibiotic treatment of this group for some diseases may not be effective.

Antibiotics in early pregnancy, in the first month and in the first days are prescribed with great care, but if there is no way out, and the expected benefit outweighs the possible risk, the doctor may prescribe antibiotics of the cefazolin group to the pregnant woman. These are ceftriaxone, cefazolin and many others. As a rule, they are prescribed only for serious illnesses, for example, if the expectant mother falls ill with pneumonia.

In ENT diseases, antibiotics in the 1st trimester of pregnancy are tried to be prescribed locally, these are drugs such as Bioparox, it is safe at any time.

If you are sick and you have a short pregnancy period, take the question of choosing medicines responsibly, let your doctor prescribe them.

Antibiotics during pregnancy, consequences

Permitted antibiotics during pregnancy are safe, but there are situations when the expectant mother gets sick, unaware of an interesting situation. In such cases, even a doctor is able to prescribe dangerous drugs, also not knowing about the patient's pregnancy.

If a woman drank antibiotics during pregnancy in the first week, even in the case of a very dangerous drug, there will most likely not be consequences for the baby, since at the earliest stages all harmful factors work on the "all or nothing" principle, that is, the embryo will either die, or a healthy baby will be born.

However, if the expectant mother drank antibiotics at the beginning of pregnancy at 3 weeks and later, when the connection between the mother's body and the embryo has already formed, the consequences can be serious.

The consequences of taking antibiotics during pregnancy are primarily associated with the gestational age, and with what kind of medicine was prescribed.

What antibiotics are not allowed during pregnancy? Practically, with the exception of penicillins, cefazolins, and macrolides, they are all harmful during pregnancy. For some of them, it is clearly established how they are dangerous. For example, gentamicin and related drugs lead to the birth of a completely deaf child, tetracycline damages the enamel of the baby's teeth, and fluoroquinolones cause malformations of the child's skeletal system. Other antibiotics are not well understood to warrant their use in pregnant women.

The harm of antibiotics during pregnancy is not always guaranteed and inevitable. If it so happened that you did not know about pregnancy and took one of the unsafe drugs at an early stage, you should carefully consider the first routine screening ultrasound, which is performed at 10-11 weeks of pregnancy. As a rule, large serious developmental anomalies at this time are successfully detected and a vicious pregnancy still has time to interrupt.

If the mother took antibiotics during pregnancy for more than 12-14 weeks, there is no longer any risk of major malformations. But the very same gentamicin is still able to deprive a baby of hearing, this effect extends not only to pregnant women, but also to young children. And many other antibiotics affect pregnancy in late stages, causing deviations from the norm, albeit small, but in the future can seriously worsen the child's quality of life.

Can antibiotics be used during pregnancy? Yes, you can, but not everything, and only under the supervision of a doctor and according to strict indications. What antibiotics can be used during pregnancy in your period and with your disease should be decided by a doctor armed with knowledge, not you. The stakes are too high and the risk is too great.

Planning a pregnancy after taking antibiotics

All of the above may scare you, because situations where antibiotics were prescribed before pregnancy or at an early stage before it became known about it are very common. You could be sick, and barely after recovering, you find out that you are pregnant.

Pregnancy after antibiotic treatment has a certain risk, not for the reason that the expectant mother drank the medicine, but because of the reason that served as an indication for its appointment. An infectious disease in itself is a sufficient risk, and you need to discuss with your doctor whether the baby has a chance of being born healthy, as some infections are not compatible with pregnancy.

The question of when to plan a pregnancy after antibiotics is individual, you need to get stronger after an illness. By themselves, the drugs do not affect pregnancy, as they are quickly excreted from the body, but your weakened state creates far from ideal conditions for the development of the baby.

Planning a pregnancy after taking antibiotics is not immediately advisable; postpone conception for a couple of months, for a period when you are completely healthy. However, if pregnancy came after a course of antibiotics and is not planned, do not worry too much. Antibiotics during pregnancy before the delay will not affect the baby, you just have to make every effort to improve your health after the illness.

Some women are interested in the question, but what if pregnancy has come, and the husband was taking antibiotics at the time of conception? This is not scary, the medicine does not affect the quality of the sperm.

Another common question is, if a pregnancy test is done, can antibiotics taken by a woman distort the result? A pregnancy test reacts positively to chorionic gonadotropin in the urine, and any antibiotic is an inert substance for it that does not affect the result. If you are pregnant, the test will be positive, if not, it will be negative, and antibiotics do not affect the appearance of the second strip.

Now you know how dangerous antibiotics are during pregnancy and whether they affect it, we hope that this article will help you avoid mistakes and not resort to self-medication, and will reassure you a little if it happened that you were forced to take these medications.

Our partner online pharmacy Apteka.RU is the most friendly service on the Runet

Our advantages:

Delivery works in 30 major cities of Russia.

You will receive even the rarest drugs within 1-2 days.

Lowest prices.

All medicines are certified and really work.

Order in 4 clicks, checkout online

It is reliable, profitable and convenient with us.

Many women are afraid to take antibacterial drugs during pregnancy, as they believe that they can cause irreparable harm to the health of their unborn baby. Their fears are understandable, but it is worth considering that some infections, if left untreated, can cause much more harm to the baby and mother than antibiotics. For example, infections of the genitourinary system caused by group B streptococcus can cause early and late miscarriages, stillbirth, lead to intrauterine infection of the fetus, contribute to the development of secondary placental insufficiency, intrauterine growth retardation, sepsis in the mother and newborn.

There are situations when you cannot do without antibiotics during pregnancy, however, independent choice of a drug is absolutely unacceptable. All drugs during pregnancy, even over-the-counter and seemingly harmless, should be taken only after consulting your doctor.

The choice of antibiotic for the treatment of infections in pregnant women is carried out according to the FDA classification of drugs (American Food and Drug Administration). This is a generally accepted classification of drugs into groups, according to their safety for the fetus, and, accordingly, according to the admissibility of their appointment to pregnant women.

During pregnancy, it is allowed to use drugs belonging to group A and B, according to the FDA classification... Category A includes drugs whose safety has been confirmed by appropriate studies in pregnant women. Drugs from group A do not have an adverse effect on the fetus, both in the first and the next two trimesters. At the moment, there is not a single antibacterial drug of systemic action in this group.

In this regard, for the treatment of women carrying a child, antibiotics from category B of action on the fetus are used. These are drugs that have no proven negative effect on the fetus. They were taken by pregnant women and have no proven teratogenic or embryotoxic effects. A controlled study of their safety was carried out in animals.

What medications can pregnant women take?

Category B includes antibiotics of the penicillin, cephalosporin and macrolide groups. Also, for urinary tract infections in pregnant women, Monural® (phosphonic acid derivative) can be used. In the second and third trimester, metronidazole® (nitroimidazoles) can be used.

From penicillins, drugs are used:

  • Penicillin G ®,
  • Ampicillina ®,
  • Amoxicillin ®,
  • Amoxicillin with clavulanic acid ®,
  • Piperacillin ®.

From cephalosporin antibiotics, drugs are prescribed:

  • Cephalexin ®,
  • Cefazolin ®,
  • Cefaclora ®,
  • Cefuroxime ®,
  • Cefoxitin ®,
  • Cefonicide ®,
  • Cefixime ®,
  • Ceftriaxone ®,
  • Cefotaxime ®,
  • Ceftazidime ®,
  • Cefepime ®.

Macrolide antibiotics are used:

  • Erythromycin ®,
  • Azithromycin ®,
  • Josamycin ®,
  • Spiramycin ®.

Spiramycin ® is the drug of choice for the treatment of toxoplasmosis during pregnancy and can be effectively used even in the first trimester.

Pregnancy after antibiotics

Many couples planning a pregnancy are wondering: How do antibiotics affect conception?

It should be noted that taking antibiotics approved for pregnant women is approved even in the IVF program. Recent studies by reproductive specialists show that timely and reasonedly prescribed drugs do not have a negative impact either on the effectiveness of an attempt to get pregnant, or on the health of the mother and fetus.

Conception and FDA Category B antibiotics

Considering that drugs of group B can be prescribed to pregnant women, they do not have embryotoxic and teratogenic effects, and therefore, can be prescribed when planning pregnancy.

Conception and antibiotics: the effect of drugs on fertility

There is no reliable evidence that antibacterial drugs affect a woman's ability to conceive a child. However, some antibacterial agents can interfere with the spermatogenesis process in men.

Permitted antibiotics when planning a pregnancy for a woman:

  • penicillins;
  • cephalosporins;
  • macrolides.

Can a pregnancy be planned if my husband is taking antibiotics?

Penicillin drugs can temporarily reduce fertility in men. The likelihood of getting pregnant if the husband took penicillin drugs within a month after treatment is lower. However, these drugs do not affect the health of the unborn baby, if pregnancy does occur.

Cephalosporins and macrolides have no effect on spermatogenesis. After treatment with these remedies, pregnancy can be planned.

How long does it take to get pregnant after taking antibiotics?

When planning a pregnancy, treatment with category B antibiotics is considered acceptable. That is, if the future father and mother of the child took these drugs, the risk for the future child is minimal.

However, when treating with tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, fluoroquinolones and sulfonamides, it is advisable to postpone pregnancy by 2-3 months.

It should be borne in mind that tetracycline can accumulate in bone tissue, increasing the risk of liver damage in a pregnant woman.

Also, the above drugs negatively affect spermatogenesis, therefore, it is undesirable to plan a pregnancy earlier than two months after taking them by your husband.