Antibiotics And Increased Risk Of Miscarriage
Antibiotics are very helpful in fighting various diseases. In certain cases, they are a lifesaver and can affect the health of a person. It is believed that certain antibiotics if taken during early pregnancy can increase the risk of miscarriage in women. This does not mean that all antibiotics can cause this. Some of the antibiotics can be prescribed during pregnancy and are safe to use. This was found in a study done by researchers in Canada. It was found that certain classes of antibiotics increased the risk of miscarriage. This was mostly before the 20th week of pregnancy. The chances of miscarriage are less for people who do not take any antibiotics. These studies were published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
It was found that the most frequently found antibiotics such as penicillin, erythromycin and cephalosporin are usually associated with increased risk of miscarriage. If in case a woman develops an infection during the pregnancy it needs to be treated with antibiotics. It is good to see that most of the antibiotics which are widely used by people across the globe do not cause or increase the risk of miscarriage in women.
The doctors still are concerned about the effects of these antibiotics on the fetus. The antibiotics have to be used to treat the different infections caused throughout the pregnancy. The link between the use of antibiotics and miscarriages in women have shown conflicting results as per the studies concluded recently. Some studies have highlighted that there can be a link between the two, however, others disagree.
A new study was done recently by researchers in which they reviewed the data. The data contained information of the pregnancies in the province and which was covered by the government drug insurance plan. This data contained the majority of pregnancies in the province and due to which the researchers felt confident that this kind of volume of data can provide clear insight and accurate information. The database contained the details of the prescriptions filled for antibiotics and the researchers did not have to depend on questionnaire and memory of the women patients to recall the name of the medicine they were prescribed during their pregnancy. This was considered a far more reliable and valid data compared to any other. The cases of more than 8000 women were compared. These cases were the ones in which there was a miscarriage in the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. The number of women who suffered a miscarriage after the 20th week was even higher. Overall more than 12500 women between the age group 15 to 45 years had taken antibiotics. The findings later classified that the following antibiotics quinolones, macrolides, sulfonamides, tetracyclines, and metronidazole were the major culprits and caused miscarriages in women. These findings were consistent with the results from the previous studies. The use of these medicines is prohibited during pregnancy and there is enough evidence which supports this advice. Although the risk may be small it is still better to check with a doctor before using any such medicine.