Cholestasis of Pregnancy:
During the alter stages of pregnancy, some women begin to feel very very itchy. This is probably the result of cholestatis, a disorder of the liver that occurs only during pregnancy called as Cholestasis of Pregnancy. In this case of cholestatis, the usual flow of bile in the gall bladder is affected by a high dose of pregnancy hormones. Cholestatis is most prevalent during the last trimester when the pregnancy hormones are functioning at their peak but they should be gone very soon after your delivery. Cholestatis of pregnancy affects the functioning of the gallbladder which is why the flow of bile is restricted when this occurs. Bile is mandatory for the breaking down of fat in the digested food. When the flow of bile is restricted due to cholestatis, the bile acids may build up and flow into the blood stream which quite naturally is not very healthy.
The usual symptoms of cholestatis of pregnancy are itching of the hands and feet which happens to be the only symptom that is noticed by those suffering from cholestatis, darkening of the color of your urine, lightening of the color of your excreta, tiredness and fatigue, loss of appetite, mood swings etc. The lesser common symptoms that might also be experienced by some pregnant women suffering from cholestatis are yellowing of the skin, eyes and other parts of the body including mucous membranes, nausea and pain of the upper right quadrant. This is not a very common disease and only 1 or 2 out of 1000 pregnancies would experience cholestatis. However women carrying multiple children in her womb, those who have a history of damaged liver and even those who have family members suffering from cholestatis stand a higher risk of suffering from cholestatis during pregnancy.
Cholestatis stands chances of increasing the risk for fetal distress, still birth or premature birth. An unborn baby is totally dependent on the mother’s liver to help remove bile acids from the blood stream. When this is not possible, there is undue stress created on the liver of the baby. Women who are suffering from cholestatis should go in for thorough medical check ups and also labor should be induced the moment the baby’s lungs have matured and can function fully.
The primary aim to treat cholestatis of pregnancy is to reduce the feel of itch. For this purpose, there are available topical anti itch medicines, medicines to reduce the concentration of bile, cold water baths which help to reduce the flow of blood in the body, dexamethansone which helps to mature the baby’s lungs at a faster rate, vitamin K which jeeps the mother from experience a hemorrhage either before during or after delivery, dandelion root and milk thistle which are beneficial natural products for the better functioning of the liver, regular tests that will help to monitor the development of the baby etc.
If a woman experiences cholestatis of pregnancy, it is not definite that she might experience the same during the next pregnancy. There are chances she might and again there are chances she will not. However pretty much obviously, a woman does have increased chances of experiencing cholestatis during her future pregnancies if she has already experienced it once.
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