Davis Levin Livingston Firm Blog »
February 01, 2012
Asthma Drugs Linked to Risk of Birth Defects
A new study has both good and bad news for pregnant women, who suffer from asthma. The bad news is that pregnant women who use anti-asthma medication may be at a higher risk for delivering babies with birth defects. The good news is that the increase is very slight. In fact, doctors say they have not been able to determine whether the slightly increased risk of birth defects is due to the medications or because of the severity of the asthma. The data came from the National Birth Defects Prevention Study which included 2, 853 children who suffered from at least one birth defect. The researchers compared the children with 6,726 infants with no birth defect at all. They found that there was a very slight increase in the risk of birth defects among women who took antiasthma medications. The defects that were lined to the use of antiasthma drugs were very rare. Moreover, the risk of defects seemed to be the highest in women who took the drug during the month before the pregnancy, and continued through the 3rd month of pregnancy. Asthma medications are linked to several birth effects including esophageal atresia or the incomplete development of the esophagus, anorectal atresia or the blockage of the anus and omphalocele or the protrusion of the intestines and other organs through the bellybutton. These are rare birth defects, and according to the researchers, the use of steroids and bronchodilators only slightly increases the risk of defects. Additionally, there is not enough evidence or research to confirm if the defects were the result of the drug or the result of the asthma. Hawaii birth injury lawyers would advise any pregnant woman who suffers from asthma not to stop taking her medication, but to keep her doctor informed about all medications that she is currently taking.
Category:
[Birth Injury]
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