News Moms Need

This year the theme of  National Birth Defects Prevention Month is Prevent to Protect. This week we will be posting a series of guest posts from MotherToBaby’s Kirstie Perrotta, MPH, Lorrie Harris-Sagaribay, MPH, Robert Felix and Susan Sherman of the Organization of Teratology Information Specialists (OTIS) Zika Task Force. Each day they will respond to one of the top five questions they receive about preventable infectious diseases and what you can do to prevent exposure during pregnancy.

“It’s 2018! I didn’t even know you could get syphilis nowadays!” Yes, I mentioned the stats about syphilis and other infections that can affect pregnancy to the caller who had contacted me through our free MotherToBaby helpline. I thought, this is a great time to educate her as well as others about a variety of infections. Some infections, like Zika, seem to make headlines every week, while others tend to be discussed much less frequently. January is National Birth Defects Prevention Month, and this year’s focus is on infection prevention.

I just found out I have syphilis and my doctor recommended medication to treat it, but I’m worried the medication will hurt the baby. What should I do?

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by bacteria that can be treated and cured with antibiotics. Learning that you have syphilis when you are pregnant is frightening, but the earlier you treat the infection, the better the outcome for you and your baby.

The syphilis bacteria can spread to the baby during pregnancy (called congenital syphilis or CS). CS can cause stillbirth, prematurity, or other pregnancy problems, including birth defects of the bones, the brain and other body systems. If you are diagnosed with syphilis during pregnancy, be sure to talk with your baby’s pediatrician since a baby might develop symptoms of CS even after being born.

The medications that are used to treat syphilis have been around for many years and are well studied. While there is always the possibility of side effects with any medication, the antibiotics used to treat syphilis during pregnancy are very well tolerated by most women.

The MotherToBaby website contains fact sheets on many of the medications doctors prescribe during pregnancy. If you still have concerns about the medication your doctor has prescribed to treat your syphilis, you can review the fact sheet and contact a MotherToBaby specialist at 866-626-6847.

Other posts in the series:

“Spread Prevention, Not the Infection” during Pregnancy: Zika

“Spread Prevention, Not the Infection” during Pregnancy: Listeria

“Spread Prevention, Not the Infection” during Pregnancy: Toxoplasmosis

About MotherToBaby 

MotherToBaby is a service of the Organization of Teratology Information Specialists (OTIS), suggested resources by many agencies including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). If you have questions about exposures during pregnancy and breastfeeding, please call MotherToBaby toll-FREE at 866-626-6847 or try out MotherToBaby’s new text information service by texting questions to (855) 999-3525. You can also visit MotherToBaby.org to browse a library of fact sheets about dozens of viruses, medications, vaccines, alcohol, diseases, or other exposures during pregnancy and breastfeeding or connect with all of our resources by downloading the new MotherToBaby free app, available on Android and iOS markets.

Congenital syphilis (present at birth) can cause serious lifelong health conditions, or even death, for a baby. Unfortunately, the number of congenital syphilis cases in the United States increased 46 percent between 2012 and 2015.

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease (STD), also known as a sexually transmitted infection (STI). You can get it by having unprotected sex with someone who is infected with syphilis. You can also get it by having direct contact with an infected person’s syphilis sore which may be on a person’s lips, in their mouth or on their genitals.

If a woman has syphilis and gets pregnant, she needs to be treated for syphilis. If she doesn’t receive treatment, syphilis can pass to her baby.

The good news is that congenital syphilis is preventable:

1. Protect yourself first. Either don’t have sex or have safe sex by using a condom or other barrier method.
2. Go to all your prenatal care checkups; your provider will test you for syphilis.
3. If you have syphilis, your provider will begin treatment. The sooner you receive treatment, the less likely you and your baby may have complications from the infection.
4. Ask your partner to be tested (and treated) for syphilis, so that you don’t get infected or re-infected.

If you’re not sure whether you have syphilis, or think you may have been exposed to it, contact your healthcare provider.

See our article for more details about protecting yourself and your baby from syphilis. Our article includes diagnosis and treatment information, too.

If you have questions, text or email AskUs@marchofdimes.org.

1. What is an STD?

A sexually transmitted disease (STD) is an infection that you can get from having sex with someone who is infected. About 19 million people get an STD each year in the US. Some common STDs are genital warts,  genital herpes, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and hepatitis B.

2. What’s the big deal?

STDs can cause problems if you are trying to get pregnant. If you are already pregnant, STDs can be harmful to you and your baby. Your baby can get infected while passing through the birth canal during labor and delivery. Some STDs can cross the placenta and infect your baby in the womb. Having an STD can complicate your pregnancy and have serious effects on your baby, which may be seen at birth or may not be discovered until months or years later.

3. How do you know if you have an STD?

Many people with an STD don’t know they’re infected because some STDs have no symptoms. If you are not yet pregnant, ask your provider to test you. Most problems during pregnancy and in your developing baby can be prevented be receiving testing and treatment and going to all of your prenatal care appointments.

4. How will an STD affect your unborn baby?

STDs may cause problems during pregnancy, including premature birth,  premature rupture of the membranes (PROM), ectopic pregnancy, birth defects, miscarriage or stillbirth.

5. How can you protect yourself and your baby?

Whether you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant, talk to your health care provider about getting tested for STDs. If you find out you have an STD, get treatment right away. Receiving treatment can help protect you and your baby during pregnancy and birth.

You can also receive certain vaccines, such as the HPV vaccine, which can help protect against genital warts. You can get the HPV vaccine up until age 26.

The best way to prevent yourself from getting an STD is by not having sex; however if you do, have sex with only one partner who doesn’t have sex with others. Use a condom if you’re not sure if your partner has an STD or ask your partner to get tested and treated for STDs.