Do you have an illness?
Certain conditions can affect pregnancy. Try to have information regarding this illness during the intake appointment at your midwife. For certain illnesses we will also like to know if the heredity of it has ever been tested in the family.
At the start of the pregnancy, every woman gets her blood checked. The diseases HIV, hepatitis B and syphilis are tested.
Fifth disease
Fifth disease is a children’s disease. Symptoms are spots all over the body, starting in the face. The spots can be butterfly-shaped, and the patient can be running a fever. Please always contact us if you’ve been in contact with someone with this disease.
Roseola
Contact with someone who has roseola during your pregnancy poses no risk.
Chicken pox
Chicken pox is a highly contagious children’s disease. It is characterized by itchy blisters filled with fluid on the skin of the entire body. Most adults will have had the disease as a child. It can still return later in life as shingles.
If you have had chicken pox before, you are immune and won’t be at risk during pregnancy. If you are pregnant and are unsure whether or not you have had chicken pox, please mention this during our intake appointment. If you’ve been in contact with someone with chicken pox during your pregnancy and you have never had it before, please contact us.
Syphilis (lues)
Syphilis, also called lues, is a sexually transmitted disease which is passed from one person to another through unsafe sexual contact. To prevent infection of the baby it is important to detect the illness as early as possible in the pregnancy. If blood tests show you have syphilis, you will be referred to the gynaecologist and you will receive antibiotics.
HIV/AIDS
HIV is the virus that causes HIV/AIDS. You can get HIV infected by having unprotected sex with someone who has the virus, or when infected blood enters the blood stream directly (from a shared needle when using drugs for instance). If you are infected with HIV, your blood can transfer the virus to your baby during pregnancy or delivery, or afterwards during breastfeeding. Chances of contaminating the baby can be reduced drastically by taking antiviral drugs during pregnancy.
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B is a liver infection caused by the hepatitis B virus. Sometimes people don’t show any symptoms so they don’t know they are infected. After infection, some people keep carrying the hepatitis B virus. These people are called “virus carriers”. They can contaminate others. Being a virus carrier while pregnant, does not have any negative impact on your baby. However, during birth the baby could be exposed to the virus and become infected. That is why your baby will receive hepatitis B immunoglobulin shortly after being born. These are ready-made antibodies administered by injection which can protect your baby from the virus. It is also important that your child builds up an immune system against the hepatitis B virus. That is why he or she will be vaccinated. The first vaccination will be administered 48 hours after birth. After that he or she will receive vaccination at 2, 3, 4 and 11 months.