Hypothyroidism during pregnancy, when not identified and treated, can cause complications for the baby, as the baby needs thyroid hormones produced by the mother to develop properly. Therefore, when there is few or no thyroid hormone, such as T3 and T4, there may be miscarriage, delayed mental development and a decrease in IQ.
In addition, hypothyroidism can decrease the chances of getting pregnant because it alters a woman’s reproductive hormones, preventing ovulation and fertile period from occurring during the menstrual cycle. Therefore, it is important that pregnant women are monitored by the obstetrician and that TSH, T3 and T4 measures are taken to identify hypothyroidism and treatment is initiated if necessary.
- Hypothyroidism during pregnancy can cause complications for both the mother and the baby.
- Especially when the diagnosis is not made and when treatment is not started or is not done correctly.
- The baby’s development depends entirely.
- Especially during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
- On the thyroid hormones produced by the mother.
- Thus.
- When the woman has hypothyroidism.
- There is an increased risk of consequences and complications for the baby.
- The main being:.
In addition to being at risk for the baby, women with unidentified or treated hypothyroidism are at increased risk of developing anemia, placenta previa, bleeding after childbirth, preterm birth, and preeclampsia, which tends to appear. 20 weeks gestation and causes high blood pressure in the mother, which can affect the proper functioning of the organs and cause a miscarriage or premature birth. Learn more about preeclampsia and how to treat it.
Hypothyroidism can make pregnancy difficult because it can disrupt the menstrual cycle and influence ovulation, and in some cases, there may be no egg release. Thyroid hormones influence the production of female sex hormones, which are responsible for women’s menstrual cycle and fertility.
Thus, to get pregnant even if you have hypothyroidism, it is necessary to keep the disease well under control, perform blood tests to evaluate hormone levels and properly follow the treatment recommended by the doctor.
During disease control, reproductive system hormones are also better controlled and, after about 3 months, it is possible to get pregnant normally. However, regular blood tests are needed to assess the need for medications and the respective doses.
In addition, for pregnancy to be possible, it is important for a woman to check whether her menstrual cycle has become more or less regular and, with the help of the gynecologist, to identify the fertile period, which corresponds to the period in which it exists is a higher probability of pregnancy. Pregnancy. Find out when the fertile period is by doing the following test:
In most cases, pregnant women already have pre-pregnancy hypothyroidism, but prenatal testing helps detect diseases in women who have no symptoms of the problem.
For the diagnosis of the disease, blood tests should be performed to evaluate the amount of thyroid hormones in the body, with TSH, T3, T4 and thyroid antibodies and, in positive cases, repeat the test every 4 to 8 weeks. during pregnancy to maintain control of the disease.
If the woman already has hypothyroidism and is considering becoming pregnant, she should keep the disease well under control and undergo blood tests every 6 to 8 weeks from the first trimester of pregnancy, and the dose of the drug should be higher than before pregnancy, and follow the recommendations of the obstetrician or endocrinologist.
When the disease is discovered during pregnancy, the use of medications to replace thyroid hormones should begin as soon as the problem is identified, and tests should also be performed every 6 to 8 weeks to readjust the dose.
In addition to the gestation period, hypothyroidism can also occur in the first year after delivery, especially 3 or 4 months after the birth of the baby. This is due to changes in the woman’s immune system, which destroys thyroid cells. In most cases, the problem is transient and resolves within a year of delivery, but some women develop permanent hypothyroidism and are more likely to all have the problem again during a future pregnancy.
For example, attention should be paid to symptoms of the disease and blood samples should be taken to evaluate thyroid function in the first year after delivery. Then, see what the symptoms of hypothyroidism are.
Watch the video below to learn what to eat to avoid thyroid problems: