22 February 2007

do I need a new obstetrician in week 33?

So the fun just never ends with the UTI. I went to the OB yesterday and was prescribed an antibiotic. I picked it up on the way home. Two pills a day for three days and it cost less than 3 bucks. The pharmacist said it was rated "C" for pregnancy, meaning there were insufficient studies on humans to make a safety judgement. He also passed the buck, saying my OB probably knew what she was doing. Hmmm....

Before I took any of the pills I did a quick check on the web to see what I could find out. Safefetus says it's really a B, though that changes to D near term. I kept searching and found far too many seemingly-valid sites that said this drug should not be given to pregnant women, especially in the third trimester. The risk seems to be extreme jaundice resulting in brain damage, but I also found cleft palates and a few other things mentioned. Seemed like brain damage would be a good thing to avoid so I called the OB office back.

When they called me back (since it is always phone tag with them) they said not to worry, of course, and to take the drug. It's the only one for what I have, since I can't have penicillin, it's only three days, and if I were in week 38 or 39, they would not give it to me.

After thinking it over, I took the pill this morning. Though the UTI is asymptomatic, it has the potential to turn into some really unpleasant situations. I am not generally this trusting of the medical community and it's leading me to seriously consider whether I'm using the right practice. Everything was fine with Oliver, but that was a very easy and uncomplicated pregnancy. It feels like this one has been just plain icky from the start. It's not the doc's fault but they haven't done much to make it easier. I haven't seen my primary OB in months. I know I don't get to choose who is on call when I finally go into labor but she's the only one I am truly comfortable with. Granted, she wasn't around much during Oliver's delivery but my confidence level isn't high with the others in the practice.

Looks like I need to keep thinking about this. I'll probably go into labor before I make a decision.

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