Shingles in late pregnancy??

[LucyG]

I'm 36 weeks pregnant, and found out this afternoon that I have shingles. I have a call in to my midwife, but in the meantime, does anyone know anything about how this could affect the baby and my delivery plans (vbac)? My family doctor put me on five days of Prednisone and a seven-day course of Valtrex. He didn't seem overly concerned (said he would probably not even treat me with medication if I weren't pregnant), but I'm really frightened for my baby. I'm not in pain, other than the aches and pains of late pregnancy. Any information you have would be greatly appreciated. TIA!


http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_sapphire_24m.gif[/img][/url]
nursed for 2.5 years!
And . . . Blessing #2 due in March!

[dr mom]

Don't panic!

Chickenpox in the third trimester would be much more concerning. Shingles is a reactivation of the chickenpox virus (varicella) which means that you have already had a varicella infection, and your body has antibodies against it. (And right now, your baby shares your antibodies)

Chickenpox is a respiratory infection transmitted by coughing and sneezing - shingles is not - the only way shingles can be transmitted to another person is if they haven't had varicella, and they come into direct contact with the fluid inside the blisters. Then they get chickenpox, not shingles. If you go to term, by the time you deliver, the blisters should all be healed up and there will be no risk of transmission to your newborn.

Shingles tends to break out at times of physical or emotional stress. Pregnancy is an immunocompromised state (your immune system is suppressed to allow the baby, a non-self "parasite" of sorts, to thrive), so it's not at all uncommon to have shingles in pregnancy...and then never have problems again.

Hope this resolves quickly and isn't too painful. :(

[octmom]

A friend just went through this a month and and a half ago. She was scheduled for a c/s (had an emergency c/s with her first baby) and they decided to postpone a few days to give the shingles more of a chance to heal. She ended up going into labor before the re-scheduled c/s and she went ahead and had a c/s. (AFAIK, she didn't want to attempt a VBAC.) They had to be careful about the placement of her epidural/ spinal because she had some sores on her lower back. I think she said that they had to be sure not to introduce the fluid in the blisters into her spinal fluid. Everything turned out just fine for her and her DD. She did mention that all visitors and staff had to gown up when they came into her room the first couple of days and that they kept her DD in her room the entire time because they wanted to be sure that none of the babies in the nursery would be exposed to anything. No problems at all.

Hope everything goes well for you and that the shingles clear up quickly!

Jerilyn
DS, Sean 10/03
DD is scheduled to arrive via c/s on March 21! :)

"Baby makes days shorter, nights longer, home happier, and love stronger."