During your pregnancy, you may experience the pain of any kind. These can be mild headaches that you can tolerate without medication. However, if migraines, back pain, contractions, or acute toothache occur, you will quickly need help.
Inform yourself in detail so that you can deal responsibly with the intake of painkillers during your pregnancy.
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Ibuprofen During Pregnancy: How Does The Drug Work?
The drug belongs to the groups of analgesics, antipyretics and antiphlogistics. Behind them are analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic groups of drugs.
The drug contains all three modes of action and belongs to the cortisone-free preparations.
Ibuprofen 400
Ibuprofen 400 can be used for mild to moderate pain. The main areas of application are, for example, headaches, toothaches and period pains. You can also take this medicine for fever.
Ibuprofen 600
Ibuprofen 600 has a stronger concentration of the active ingredient and is used more intense complaints, such as pain and inflammation. These include:
- Acute painful conditions associated with arthritis.
- Chronic conditions associated with arthritis, such as chronic polyarthritis.
- Inflammatory rheumatic spinal diseases.
- Degenerative joint and spinal diseases associated with irritable conditions.
- Soft tissue rheumatic diseases associated with inflammation.
- Injuries that involve painful inflammation and swelling.
The Side Effects Of Ibuprofen
Like any medication, this drug has certain side effects. You do not have to experience these, but they have been observed in patients. They include:
- Gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, cramps and even ulcers.
- Bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract up to breakthroughs.
- Cardiovascular complaints, such as high blood pressure, heart failure or edema, increase in risk of stroke and heart attack.
- Central nervous complaints, such as dizziness, headaches, insomnia, irritability.
- Effects on blood count.
- Inflammation of the esophagus and pancreas.
- Water retention in the tissues.
- Disturbances of kidney function.
- Hypersensitivity reactions of the skin, respiratory tract, cardiovascular system.
- Liver function disorders.
- Psychological reactions.
Check with your doctor if the medication is suitable to relieve your symptoms and what side effects are to be expected specifically in your case.
Ibuprofen Before Pregnancy: Are You Endangering Your Desire To Have A Child?
In order to become pregnant without danger, you should already pay attention to a healthy lifestyle before conception. This includes abstaining not only from alcohol, cigarettes and coffee, but also from medications, if possible.
However, in a large study, scientists found that taking ibuprofen before pregnancy does not affect women’s fertility and does not jeopardize a desire to have children.
Ibuprofen During Pregnancy: At What Stage Can You Take The Drug?
Ibuprofen is one of the pain and inflammation-relieving medications of choice, even in pregnant women. This is true for the first two-thirds of pregnancy. In the last third of pregnancy, the drug can cause severe damage to the fetus.
Among other things, the ductus arteriosus can be closed prematurely. In fetuses, the ductus arteriosus provides the connection between the aorta and the pulmonary artery.
This is vital for the fetus because the lungs are not yet ventilated in the womb and can therefore only be supplied with blood via the ductus artists. If the ductus arteriosus closes prematurely, the fetus dies.
After birth, the ductus arteriosus closes on its own within a few days. The drug – taken during the last third of pregnancy – inhibits labor activity, so that the birth may be delayed and have a harmful effect on your child.
The drug does not cause miscarriage in the first two thirds of pregnancy.
Ibuprofen – Correctly Dosed
If you take ibuprofen during pregnancy, you should inform yourself about the correct dosage and also the strength of the effect. Talk to your doctor about the strength you need. You can get ibuprofen 400 without a prescription at the pharmacy. For Ibuprofen 600 you need a prescription from your doctor.
The dosage of the medication also depends on the strength. You can take the 400 mg preparation up to one tablet three times a day. In total, you should not exceed 1,200 mg per day.
If the medicine has a higher potency, the number of tablets you can take will be reduced.
Will This Medicine Affect My Daughter’s Fertility?
Although the drug can be taken as a treatment of choice for pain and inflammation during the first two-thirds of your pregnancy, you should think very carefully about whether you take the drug during your pregnancy.
Studies increasingly indicate that ibuprofen – taken in the first trimester of pregnancy – may reach the placenta and cause damage to the fetus’ ovaries.
However, only long-term studies will be able to provide complete certainty of these findings. These are not yet available. Ask your doctor about this risk.
Your doctor will also be able to inform you about alternatives to this preparation and, if necessary, give you other treatment options for pain and inflammation.
Conclusion: Is There A Risk?
Ibuprofen has a broad mode of action and is also the drug of choice during the first two trimesters of pregnancy. It is important that you talk to your doctor before taking ibuprofen and inform yourself sufficiently about the side effects and risks of the medication.
You should also discuss the dosage and active ingredient strength with your doctor. In particular, you should be informed about the risks to your unborn child both during pregnancy and in the long term after birth.
Various studies indicate that ibuprofen taken in the first trimester of pregnancy may lead to infertility in your daughter later in life. You should not take ibuprofen in the last trimester of pregnancy.
There is a risk that the drug may cause fatal damage to your unborn child in this third of pregnancy. The Embryotox Institute provides you with additional helpful advice on all questions concerning the use of medication during pregnancy. The internet platform already offers you the first information.