Facts about High-Risk Pregnancies

Hearing your obstetrician, nurse practitioner, or midwife describe your pregnancy as high-risk can be unsettling whether this is your first or third pregnancy. A wide range of common conditions can be referred to as high-risk pregnancies. Many of them are connected to pre-existing conditions that you might have had prior to getting pregnant or conditions that you might have developed during your pregnancy or while giving birth.

There is no guarantee that a high-risk pregnancy will be more challenging or difficult than a low-risk pregnancy. However, it does occasionally imply that you will require more monitoring and consultation with a Gynaecologist in Ludhiana in maternal-fetal medicine than a woman with a low-risk pregnancy.

Medical diseases that can lead to high-risk pregnancy:

1. Diabetes. In order to monitor your condition and choose the best medications, you will probably be referred to a maternal-fetal medicine specialist if you have diabetes before getting pregnant. The best preconception counselling. Because gestational diabetes is a very common condition, your obstetrician probably won’t need to consult with a specialist in maternal-fetal medicine to treat you. If a specialist in maternal-fetal medicine is consulted for gestational diabetes, he or she will monitor your baby’s development and health as well as your own health through nutrition advice, glucose monitoring, and perhaps medication.
2. Hypertension. A maternal-fetal medicine specialist will monitor your baby’s growth and may be consulted if issues arise if you had hypertension prior to becoming pregnant. Pregnancy is not advised for the use of some medications that are frequently prescribed to treat hypertension.
3. Obesity. Obese women are more likely to experience pre-eclampsia, hypertension, and diabetes during pregnancy. Experts in maternal-fetal medicine encourage women to lose weight using healthy methods because obesity is one of the few health conditions that can be changed before pregnancy and affects pregnant women.
4. Sexually transmissible conditions (STDs). Generally speaking, your obstetrician can treat you for any STDs that may develop during pregnancy or if you already have one, like herpes. In some circumstances, speaking with a specialist in maternal-fetal medicine will be necessary. An expert in maternal-fetal medicine will provide additional care and management, for instance, if you are receiving treatment for syphilis and an ultrasound reveals that your foetus may be affected. Due to the complexity of the medication regimens, maternal-fetal medicine specialists also typically provide care for women with HIV.
5. Multiples. Multiples of higher-order or twin pregnancies are more likely to experience complications. Pre-eclampsia and preterm labour are more likely to occur in women who have had multiple pregnancies. Twin pregnancies are more likely to result in foetal anomalies and growth issues, particularly if the placentas are shared.

If having a high-risk pregnancy, will all pregnancies be high-risk?

If you have one high-risk pregnancy, it does not follow that all of your subsequent pregnancies will also be high-risk. You might experience a foetal complication in one pregnancy but not in another, and your health might change over time.

However, your likelihood of experiencing preterm labour during your subsequent pregnancy increases if your previous pregnancy resulted in early delivery. If this happens, your obstetrician will manage your pregnancy using medication, and a maternal-fetal medicine expert will use ultrasound surveillance to keep track of your cervical length.