The Complete Guide to Medications During Pregnancy and Breastfeeding
Everything You Need to Know to Make the Best Choices for You and Your Baby
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
From a renowned obstetrician and expert in maternal-fetal medicine comes the only comprehensive pharmaceutical guide available to help you make informed decisions while pregnant and nursing
Sometimes even physicians disagree or appear confused about what medications are appropriate choices for pregnant and breastfeeding women. Tylenol? Ambien? Sudafed? A prescription medication for a chronic condition? How much is OK and when? Incomplete or misinformation, an out-dated FDA classification system, and fear all stand in the way. Which means taking care of your health during this important time of your life can feel scarier than it should.
The Complete Guide to Medications During Pregnancy and Breastfeeding cuts through the confusion so that you can feel good about taking care of yourself and your baby. This essential reference combines authority and empathy with an A-to-Z directory of more than six hundred drugs to help you make the best possible decisions for you and your baby.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Weiner, a maternal-fetal medical expert, and health reporter Rope (High Risk Pregnancy) tackle the complex subject of the use of medication during pregnancy in his weighty volume. The problem, as they see it, is that many doctors are confused by FDA guidelines regarding meds during pregnancy; they explain that the system, which is currently being modified, will take years to correct. In brief introductions, the authors explain that many pregnant (and breastfeeding) women need medications for their health and the health of their babies. Asthma, diabetes, hypertension, gestational diabetes, epilepsy, and high blood pressure are just a few of the conditions that must be treated. Weiner and Rope also provide describe six factors that can influence whether a particular medication will cause birth defects: whether it crosses the placenta, genetic susceptibility, timing, dose, how the medicine is taken, and the spectrum of outcomes (a range of potentially adverse outcomes, depending on how much medication is taken, how often, and when). An alphabetical list of more than 600 medications follows, with a breakdown on each describing its potential side effects and warnings, drug interactions, and how it relates to pregnancy and breastfeeding. The authors also explain how to find a maternal-fetal medicine specialist, encouraging readers to utilize their resources in conjunction with working with their physicians. (The caveat is that medical information in this area is constantly changing.) This comprehensive resource will help empower pregnant and breastfeeding women facing medication decisions, allowing them to make informed choices.
