Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion #1 AS Web Support Group Question for husbands with AS

Is it safe for the husband to get the wife pregnant while he is taking imuran/remicade or other drugs of like this?

What are the risks to the baby?

think about it now,
do you really want to pass this along to your children?

hello,
you might want to check with your husbands doctor/rheumy before doing so. i know most of the meds that my rheumy discussed with me i had to sign a release form and make sure i was not pregnant or going to try to get pregnant while on them. of course i was the female on the meds but i know there are plenty of warnings on some of the paperwork on these meds. so you may want to give his doc a ring.

take care!



Adios!
Buggie

Hi,
Can't really tell you whether or not it would be safe to try for children whilst on Remicade.

I'm starting Remicade soon & I wouldn't personally try for children whilst on this drug, just to be on the safe side, don't think there's been enough reaserch done to prove either way whether or not it would be safe.

Remicade apart there's only a very small chance of you passing AS onto your potential offspring. I've got a son & was the best thing that ever happened to me. I wouldn't let AS put you off having children, that's if you both want them. Children help to keep your mind focused on other things, rather than this damn disease, well that's my opinion anyway.

Good luck & take care of hubby & hope he's taking care of you.

George.

Hi Dawn,

From my experience medications taken by the husband will not affect a baby. I was on eight prescriptions when both my 18 and 17 year olds were conceived. I had ask the doctor if any of them would affect the babies and they told me only the wife or partner taking medications would have an affect on the baby. You can ask the doctor or nurse by phone or when your husband has an appointment to see if the newer drugs could cause anything to happen. If you could, would you please post what the doctor or nurse says so others wanting to have a baby will know?

Brent





Sandy

I know that when I was considering MTX alternatives, Cheryl mentioned arava, it's a DMARD that she's taking, but she was adamant about making sure that I wasn't trying to have more kids as it can cause very bad birth defects if taken by either the man or the woman. Maybe if she pops her head in here she can clarify more. I don't know about Remicade with that and Eric's just been for his latest Remicade treatment, so I can't have Lori ask. I'm sure you'll have answers before his next treatment.

Ian




Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy. --Benjamin Franklin

Dawn,

In reply to:

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What are the risks to the baby?

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Let's start with Imuran (azathioprine) since it has been around longer. According to RxList (click this link) Azathioprine is:

• Mutagenic in animals and humans
• Teratogenic in rabbits and mice when given in doses equivalent to the human dose (5 mg/kg daily). Abnormalities included skeletal malformations and visceral anomalies.

If you click on the link, you will see that, besides a danger from the standpoint of having children (Who here remembers thalidomide?), Imuran is a dangerous drug to be taking.

The warnings and precautions from RxList (click this link) about Remicade basically indicated that it is safe for baby-making. These conclusions result from tissue and animal studies; there is insufficient data as yet from actual humans taking Remicade.

You can group the two together because both have an immunosuppressive effect. Nevertheless, they are quite different therapies. It would be advisable to think of them as two different approaches.

Best regards,

jcwinnie

This information is being provided on an educational basis within a peer support setting. It should NOT be construed as medical advice. The reader is advised to consult the prescribing physician and / or genetic counselor for specific information about her or his situation.

dawn,

the discusion is growing broader,

I'm on MTX, been told not to get anyone pregnant.

On sulfazine or salazopyrine men can have low wiggly counts....resolves on stopping.

With Colitis the mens wigglies can be damaged (this may be with active disease) , you might want talk to the GI Dr about that or get genetic conselling. This is usually available in the pre-natal clinics.

Now on the inheritance of Chrons (in your case) and AS/Ulcerative Colitis in your husbands the chances may be higher for any child, so again I'd seek advice, we had genetic counselling after screening by the ate/pre natal clinic in 2001......my partner lost that one as a demise and the advice given was that it may due to Active UC.

My GI Dr was very good and with me on the chances my son had IBD, (he's developed inflammed joints and has some obvious GI issues) From what I learnt the figures in the studies vary.....from low, 8% to higher 20-30 this depends on both parents etc. another factor is both your HLa-B27 status (it used to be if there was B27 +ve parents the risk was higher) although this is now thought to be not the only gene involved in these diseases.

I'm not preaching, far from it I can understand the yearning for children and my children are the best thing that ever happened but if I'd known I had this, and seeing my son over the last 18 months I'd not have had children. IBD in youngsters is scary, and so is the SpA Arthritis.

Get some real expert opinion on both disease and drug risks and likely all the more immunodrugs and biologics will carry some risk.

Now what about your Chron's will you be able to handle a pregancy and motherhood?

Take Much Care,

David

I just called the Rheumy, and he said for Matt to hold off on any new meds until he sees him on Jan 31st.

We will be seeing the GI on Jan 4th, so we will be talking about this with him as well.

I will definately post what both Dr.s say.

As for me being able to go through Pregnancy, well I don't know. I know it is going to be rough. But I think I am willing to take that chance. But I do question passing anything on to my children. And then there is that not so good track record. I really thought conceiving would be easy, but it isn't. I think age (31), disease, and low lebedo for both of us is not a good mix.

We saw a gene specialist in PGH a while ago and talked to him about genetics and passing this on to our children. And he said there is a 50% chance that one of our children will NOT get Ulcerative Colitis. (we are trying to be optomistic) There is a 10% chance that it will mutate to Chrons because we both have UC. Now he based this off of our family history and everything. He spent a lot of time with us.

Now I don't have the AS gene. But he does and I think he is positive, but to is his Father. So we are concerened about passing that along as well.

I just don't remember asking the specialist about Biologic meds and Imuran and pregnancy. Probably because it was not an issue then. I did ask about prednisone, and prednisone is somewhat safe, because it does not go to the baby, but somehow passes over the placenta.

I am going to have to find all my notes.

But now we are faced with Imuran and or maybe Remicade.

Davo: it is nice to hear from you. My IBD is doing a lot better, but thanks to the steroids I am due to taper to 10mg in a week. Can't wait. My face is so pudgy. LOL But I feel much better. I feel better this round than I did with the first round with Pred that took me a year to get off of. I have been doing all the enemas and stuff to, so I think that will help.

Well that was long winded. Thank you everyone. I really appreciate this site and all the wonderful people on it.

take care and I will keep you posted on what Rheumy and GI both say about pregnancy with father on imuran or Remicade.

-Dawn-

Hi, Dawn. I hope you and your husband make the right decision for both of you. I had 3 boys before I knew why I had back pain. My 5 year old has celiac disease, I believe, but is doing very well on a gluten-free diet. We're not sure if my 3 yo is showing signs of AS or what ( he has a bump under his knee), but he is a bright, happy, outgoing child. I think a lot of our diseases can be managed well on a good diet. I'm doing much better on NSD.

Anyway, I wouldn't trade any one of my boys for the world. I think if you asked anyone with AS, "Would you have rather not been born?" the answer would be "No." I have had some significant pain issues lately, but that would still be my answer. Of course, timing with medications is another matter. I hope your doctors have some answers for you there.

I hope I haven't offended you or anyone, but that is my 2 cents for what it is worth.

Good health to you,

Ann