Managing Asthma During Pregnancy
Keeping a pregnant woman's asthma under control provides the best outcome for her baby. MeiLan Han, M.D., M.S., Asst Professor, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and Director of Women's Respiratory Clinic at the University of Michigan Health System, wants women to know that maintaining a mother's health is an important part of having a healthy baby.
Unfortunately, there are many times when pregnant women stop taking their medications because they are worried that the drugs will harm their babies. Sometimes they don't tell their health care providers they aren't taking their asthma medications until they develop problems. Dr. Han encourages women to discuss their entire medication list with their health care providers so that they feel comfortable with the medications they're taking. She says, "There are plenty of safe options for women who are pregnant and have asthma."
Interestingly there is a roughly even split of one-third of asthma patients who have improved symptoms during pregnancy, one-third who have worse symptoms during pregnancy, and one-third whose symptoms are unchanged. It is difficult to predict which group a woman will be in, therefore controlling a patient's asthma prior to pregnancy is the first step to ensure good outcomes during pregnancy. Dr. Han adds, "A healthy mom equals a healthy baby."
For some patients, the symptoms of asthma may simply be a cough. Other patients experience wheeze or shortness of breath. For those who just have a cough, they might not realize that they have asthma. Therefore, women considering pregnancy should discuss any such symptoms with their health care provider.
The University of Michigan Women's Respiratory Clinic is dedicated to the care of female patients with respiratory disease. Patients have full access to the University of Michigan's state-of-the-art diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical services, not only for lung disease but also for other conditions that may be discovered such as depression or anxiety resulting from living with chronic lung disease. Women may be referred to the Women's Respiratory Clinic by their primary care physician, or they may request an appointment on their own. To request an appointment, call (734) 647-9000.
