Chrons Disease and Pregnancy

It was not long ago that women with chrons disease were encouraged against pregnancy, but advances in the knowledge of Chrons disease and it's treatments mean that it is now safer than ever for women with chrons to get pregnant.

Studies have shown that the severity of the Chrons symptoms that are present in the mother at the time conception often continue throughout pregnancy. So if you have Chrons disease and are planning on having a baby the advice is to get the Chron's disease under control and in remission before getting pregnant. This can also give you time to get your body ready for pregnancy as most women even without chrons should do: by increasing the intake of folic acid, quitting smoking, getting more exercise and eating healthier.

Chrons Disease Drugs and Pregnancy
Naturally there are some chrons medications that are best avoided during the pregnancy, but now through research and a history of use, others are considered safe.

What drugs are not safe to take during pregncncy?
Two immunosuppressive drugs that are often used by chrons patients: Methotrexate and thalidomide should not be used during pregnancy. Thalidomide is well known for causing limb defects as well as other major organ complications in an unborn child, whilst the use of Methotrexate should be discontinued at least three months before conception as it has been known to cause abortion and skeletal abnormalities.

What drugs have been deemed safe for use during pregnancy?
So far the research has shown drugs commonly used in the treatment of chrons appear to be safe to take during pregnancy, these include: infliximab (Remicade), azathioprine (Imuran, Azasan), adalimumab (Humira) and certolizumab (Cimzia)

A few other drugs that are often used in Chrons disease flare-ups are also safe for pregnant women to use, these include: sulfasalazine (Azulfidine), forms of mesalamine (Asacol, Pentasa, Rowasa) and corticosteroids (Prednisone).

The best advice is to work very closely with your doctor that you are seeing for Crohn's disease as well as your obstetrician and your baby's pediatrician and don't be afraid to ask questions. As it is important point to remember that the biggest factor influencing a healthy pregnancy is the state of the chrons disease activity, so a well planned pregnancy when your chrons is in remission has the greatest chance for the best outcome.

Inflammatory bowel disease should be controlled prior to pregnancy: ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease. (Women's Health).: An article from: Family Practice News

Chrons Disease and Pregnancy

I found the information on pregnancy and Chrons disease that was originally written by Rhonda Mann who is from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and hope that it may help anyone out there who has Chrons disease and is thinking of having children or who may already be pregnant with Chrons disease and looking for some advice.

A Healthy Mom
The first thing that is important to point out that with any pregnancy it is beast for the woman to be in good health so if you do have Chrons disease you are already at a disadvantage. But if you have Chrons disease and want children you can help by eating right and exercising but you must also bring your Chrons Disease under control.

Chronss Disease as well as Ulcerative Colitis effect the digestive tract and are known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). There are about 1 million people in America alone who have IBD, which can cause abdominal pain and diarrhea. Both men and women are equally susceptible to IBD and the symptoms usually begin between the ages of 20 and 40, which can be particularly problematic for women who wish to have children and who have Chrons.

Because Chrons disease often affects women in their childbearing years, it is important for women to know when it is safe for them to get pregnant. This is according to Dr. Jacqueline Wolf who is a national (American) expert on IBD and pregnancy and who is also a physician in the Division of Gastroenterology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

According to the research on Crohn's disease and Pregnancy, if you have your Chrons disease under control at the moment of conception you are are less likely to have any complications during your pregnancy.

It was only about Twenty years ago, women with Chrons disease were being told not to have children now the view is different and most women with Chrons disease can have a safe pregnancy and delivery, but that is if you go into the pregnancy without the disease being active.

To achieve this, it requires using certain medications to keep IBD inactive before and during the pregnancy. Obviously you know as well as I do that this is not simple as some of the medications frequently used to treat IBD and Chrons disease are not approved for use during pregnancy and some may lead to birth defects. Unfortunately there is still a lot to learn about the safety of Chrons disease drugs during pregnancy ans especially breastfeeding but on the bright side, whilst there are still some unknowns with a few of the Chrons drug treatments, it has been found that most of the medications are safe in pregnancy.

As you probably know and I have found in the past that by coming off my medication results in me having a flare up and so it will probably not be possible to come off your Chrons disease medication during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Sometimes woman with Chrons need to make their own informed decision about what is best for themselves and their baby, but probably the best advice is if you are on any form of Chrons disease treatment, to remain on treatment - with the exception of methotrexate, which should never be used in pregnancy.


Most woman fears are whilst taking medication is what it would mean for their baby, when faced with the decision about continuing their Chrons disease treatment during pregnancy.

If you are planning to have a baby and you have Chrons disease, the best advice is to speak with your doctor and let them know of your plans and they will best be able to advise you based on your personal circumstances. But I feel that it is important to know that it is possible to have a baby if you have Chrons disease.

Inflammatory bowel disease should be controlled prior to pregnancy: ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease. (Women's Health).: An article from: Family Practice News

Chrons Disease and Pregnancy

A few people have asked me to do a little research on the effects of having Chrons disease whilst pregnant, crohn's disease often affects women of childbearing age so it is a common problem. Here are my findings:

Risk of Preterm Birth
Recent studies have shown that having active chrons disease during your pregnancy raises the risk of having a preterm birth. I guess by "active" they mean that you are having a flare up? This risk was shown to be three times higher in women with active chrons disease.

This research was carried out at the Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark by Dr. Bente Norgard and colleagues. They examined the impact of chrons disease in 71 women with low to moderately high active chrons disease during their pregnancy and another 86 women with inactive Chrons disease during pregnancy (I guess this means remission?).

Good news
The good news is that the women with the active chrons disease during their pregnancy, were shown the risks of giving birth to a child of low birth weight and congenital abnormalities were not increased, compared to the women with inactive chrons disease.

SOURCE: American Journal of Gastroenterology, September 2007.