I have had up and down platelet counts throughout my pregnancy and just recently(I am now in my 8th month) they flew down to 39,000(previously being 88,000 and the time before that 155,000. However Before that they were at 75,000). I have had no signs of bruising or any other unusal sympton and the rest of my blood work always turns out, "excellent". So right away my Doctor put me on Deltasone(a steroid) and said I have ITP(Idopathic Thrombocytopenia Purpura)...I have not read anything good about taking these types of drugs and am concerned not only about my health but most importantly the health of my unborn baby. Has anyone been put on this drug during their pregnancy?
Today-March 3rd I had another appointment and they rechecked my platelets again, they shot up to 149,000 so that's just 1,000 below normal. Not sure if was the deltasone or not but as long as they are improving I guess that is what counts. The doctor also went ahead and dropped my 60mg dosage down to 50 and two weeks I'll have another check and hopefully they can lower it again. =)
I just wanted to thank those who have responded to my request. I appreciate the time you have put forth to give me your inputs and experience.
Are you having signs of bruising or petichii?(ns on spelling)
That is a low count. Does the Dr. know the cause? Are there any optional meds?
A. I am a pharmacy technician and often times a doctor will prescribe a medication to you when the benefits are greater than the risks. Please disguss your concerns with your physician or ask your pharmacist about it. I know that Deltasone is one of those drugs that you do not want to abruptly stop. I hope this helps.
Call your pharmist and ask him about the medication and your concerns. They know more about medication then the Doctors do.
There can be side effects to almost any drug you take while pregnant, but, in your case, the good out ways the bad. Platelets affect your blood's ability to clot. The normal platelet count range is any where from 150,000-400,000 depending on the lab that's doing the test. If yours is down to 39,000, I assume your doctor is trying to keep you from hemorrhaging.
I didn't take this steroid during my pregnancy, but I took another one. I talked to every doctor I could get to listen, I was really concerned, and here's the main point. It is more important that your platelets are stable than you be on this medicine. With platelets like that your baby is at more risk. One doctor put it to me like this (mine was about breathing), it's more important they get air than worry about the risk of exposure to this medication. With you, your baby could get a lethal infection that may not hurt you as much, platelets are very important, please take the medication to protect yourself and your baby!! Good luck.
I would stay away from steroids especially during pregnancy. There are many natural remedies that can address many conditions without adverse side effects. An excellent book I recommend is 'Prescription for Nutritional Healing' by Phyllis A. Balch. The specific problem that you are experiencing may not be covered in there, but there are a lot of resources online etc. for natural remedies, as well as naturalpathic doctors who can help .
I had to take a steroid in my 8 month for Bells Pasley I can't remember which one I took my son is 14 months know. I was quite concerned about taking the steriod as well but my doctor said that it would help develope my baby's lungs faster and that was good because I had my son almost 4 weeks early. It helped my Bells Palsey. I had the baby early because all my fluid was gone when I had a sonogram. I don't know if the steriods had anything to do with that? But If you find yourself more wet then usual look into that. I went to the hospital and told them I felt extremely wet and they checked me and said I was not ruptured. Obviously I was leaking beacause by a week later all the fluid was out.
