So you've lost weight and want to be a mommy?

Spiky Bugger

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Well then, PLEASE LISTEN when you are told to WAIT!!!!

2 Case reports of birth defect associated with deficiency in bariatric surgery patients
Posted: Feb 9 (more than 1 year ago)


The January 2010 issue of SOARD reports on 2 cases of birth defect that appear to have resulted from severe maternal vitamin deficiency after malabsorptive bariatric surgery.
The first case was of a baby born at 33 weeks to a 27 year old mother 16 months post-op from a biliopancreatic diversion (BPD). The mother was deficient in vitamin A, D, K, protein, selenium and zinc. The infant was delivered prematurely with multiple defects including bone malformation, cleft palate, facial hypoplasia, and respiratory insufficiency. The baby died at 3 months of age.
The second case was of a full-term infant born to a 26 year old mother 11 months post-op from a roux-en-y gastric bypass. The infant was born with multiple defects of bone and cartilage as well as hearing loss which were attributed primarily to maternal vitamin K deficiency.
While most of the recent reports of pregnancy after weight loss surgery have been positive in terms of both fetal and maternal health, these cases should remind us that nutritional deficiency in pregnancy can lead to grave results. Both of these patients had been counseled about waiting 18 months to 2 years before becoming pregnant, one even having signed a consent form prior to bariatric surgery. Because of the significant impact that massive weight loss can have on fertility, it is likely that more young, obese women will opt for bariatric surgery to not only improve their overall health, but also to assist with pregnancy. Clinicians and patients alike need to be made aware of the problems that can arise when women who are not adequately nourished become pregnant.

Reference: Kang L , Marty D, Pauli RM, Mendelsohn NJ, Prachand V, Waggoner D. Chondrodysplasia punctata associated with malabsorption from bariatric procedures. Surg Obes Relat Dis. 2010 Jan-Feb;6(1):99-101. Epub 2009 May 23.

Abstract: Click Here
 
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Also be aware that if you thought you were infertile when you were obese, fertility can return quickly as you lose weight. My niece had a sleeve gastrectomy and 5 months later became pregnant. She was 38 and they had given up birth control after years of infertility. There was a happy outcome but sleeve gastrectomy without bypass doesn't affect vitamin deficiencies as much as DS or Rny. She didn't even know she was pregnant until well into the pregnancy because she had stopped having periods before surgery and she thought the vomiting was related to the surgery. Whether it is related or not, she lost about 50 pounds and that was it.
 
Wow, yea This is the exact reasons doctors tell you that you must use 2 forms of birth control after WLS. How sad the baby died. That mom must feel terrible.
 
It's been over 2 years since my surgery, I started having regular periods about two months after. I've been married for a year, and intimate with my husband unprotected a few months before our wedding, and yet to become pregnant. My vitamins are pretty good, except for low D and A, along with Folic Acid.. could these be preventing me from getting pregnant, or am I just unlucky. I've not been on birth control pills for many years, so that can't be a reason.
 
Please do not get pregnant until your vitamin levels are completely normal, not just "pretty good". LOW FOLATE IS A CAUSE OF SPINA BIFIDA AND NEURAL DISORDERS. You are not taking enough D and A -- and it needs to be in DRY form, not oil filled gel caps. How much do you currently take? What are your lab results?
 
Please do not get pregnant until your vitamin levels are completely normal, not just "pretty good". LOW FOLATE IS A CAUSE OF SPINA BIFIDA AND NEURAL DISORDERS. You are not taking enough D and A -- and it needs to be in DRY form, not oil filled gel caps. How much do you currently take? What are your lab results?


Excess Vitamin A can be teratogenic to fetuses. This needs to be monitored very closely, throughout the ENTIRE pregnancy (starting BEFORE you ever get pregnant ideally). Please.
 
Also of note, in a case study of one, a friend of mine recently gave birth to her third *adorable* baby several years post-DS. She had a healthier pregnancy and longer term, healthier baby than her two pre-DS babies. She waited, managed her nutrition and vitamins well and has an adorable healthy baby as a result. However, she was unable to breastfeed post-DS as it impacted her own nutritional needs. In her own words, "A week after birth, I weighed almost 20 pounds less than my pre-pregnancy weight. That was despite eating pretty much constantly, drinking apple juice like it was going out of style, and even waking in the middle of the night to eat. My body could barely keep up with growing a baby and was more or less eating itself to grow her. Once she was out, my body can only really keep up with my nutritional needs. My breastmilk was pretty much water. It was there volume-wise, but there was nothing to it to sustain a baby." So even postpartum, monitoring of baby and mother's nutritional status is critical for bariatric patients.
 

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