The level of progesterone at the very early stages of bearing a child is an important indicator that affects the prognosis of carrying a pregnancy. Lack of this hormone can lead to miscarriage, intrauterine death of the baby.
To prevent this, sometimes there is a need to maintain pregnancy with the help of drugs containing progesterone. This material will discuss what drugs and how are prescribed to women in the early stages.
The need for treatment
Progesterone levels increase during pregnancy for a reason. This the steroid hormone contributes to the normal bearing and development of the baby. From the first hours after fertilization, he begins to "prepare" the uterine cavity for the forthcoming implantation of the ovum in a week. It softens the endometrium, makes it looser, so that the ovum can more easily gain a foothold.
Under the influence of progesterone, the cervix is tightly closed, preventing the exit of the embryo, the cervical canal is filled with thick mucus, which protects the baby from the penetration of microbes and viruses into the uterus.
Progesterone protects the fetus. It suppresses maternal immunity, which can only regard a half-related embryo as a foreign object and reject it.
The hormone takes over the condition of the muscles of the uterus, it relaxes the muscles, preventing the occurrence of increased tone, which can lead to the onset of miscarriage.
The physical growth of the main reproductive organ of the expectant mother is also provided due to the large amount of progesterone in her blood. Progesterone stimulates the expectant mother's appetite, participates in the formation of certain tissues of the fetus.
The lack of the hormone is determined using a blood test, which can be prescribed if a woman has previously had miscarriages, frozen pregnancies, if she could not get pregnant for a long time, and also in case of an early threat of termination of pregnancy. If the reason lies in an insufficient level of the hormone, it is prescribed as part of a therapeutic course.
By itself, reduced progesterone is the reason for the appointment of preliminary examinations. An ultrasound scan is done to a woman to make sure that low levels of the hormone are not associated with an ectopic or frozen pregnancy, in which treatment can only be prompt. If the fetus is alive, demonstrates a heartbeat, the fertilized egg grows week by week, it makes sense to keep the baby.
Hormone levels rise gradually. In the early stages in the first trimester, its norm is 9-10 ng / ml - 46-47 ng / ml. Decrease is the basis for more careful monitoring of the expectant mother.
List of drugs
The pharmaceutical industry can offer a fairly large list of progesterone preparations for pregnant women in the initial stages of bearing a baby. They are available in different dosage forms - these are progesterone injections, and tablets, and vaginal suppositories, as well as creams and gels for external use.
Sometimes the drug is prescribed independently in one form, for example, in tablets, sometimes it is used in a complex way - tablets and injections at the same time.
Main active ingredient it can be natural or it can be synthesized in the laboratory. Natural progesterone can cause unpleasant side effects. It affects the liver, psyche, digestion, and also increases blood clotting, making it "thicker". From this point of view, preparations containing synthetic progesterone are more preferable for pregnant women.
Pills and capsules
"Pregnin"
Do not confuse this drug with "Pregnil", which contains the hCG hormone. "Pregnin" - it is a synthetic analogue of progesterone. The remedy is taken both at the planning stage of pregnancy and after conception has taken place with a deficiency of its own progesterone.
The tablets are placed under the tongue and dissolve two or three times a day. The dose is determined by the doctor. Usually it is 0.01-0.02 g, but this amount can be increased with a strong threat of miscarriage up to 0.05-0.06 g.
One tablet contains 0.01 g of the substance. Side effects of the pills can be quite unpleasant for the expectant mother - this is the development of edema and an increase in blood pressure.
"Norkolut"
This drug is based on the hormone norethisterone, which is very similar in action to progesterone, they even belong to the same group of prostagens. They try to prescribe the drug during pregnancy only in one case - if there is a threat of miscarriage.
How norethisterone affects the fetus is not known for certain, because such tests have not been carried out. The dose of the medicine in case of a threat is determined by the doctor. The product is available only in tablets.
Unauthorized intake of "Norkolut" can lead to the opposite effect - the occurrence of vaginal bleeding and loss of the child.
"Duphaston"
The composition of these tablets included another representative of the prostogen group - the hormone dydrogesterone. The drug has found very wide application in obstetrics and gynecology, it is used in the treatment of infertility, as well as to maintain pregnancy with threatened miscarriage in the early stages.
In the event of an acute threat of interruption (the appearance of pain and discharge from the genitals), up to 4 tablets (40 mg) are given once, and then every eight hours the woman is prescribed to take 1 tablet (10 mg) until the negative symptoms disappear. In this mode, the drug is drunk for a week, and then the dose is gradually reduced.
If a woman has a habitual miscarriage, she has a history of several miscarriages, the doctor will recommend taking Dufaston in a fixed dosage of 2 tablets per day throughout the first trimester, up to 20 weeks. Cancellation is allowed only with the permission of a doctor, including after IVF.
"Utrozhestan"
The capsules contain progesterone. The capsules themselves, according to the manufacturers, can act as vaginal suppositories if they are administered intravaginally. Inside capsules are taken with plenty of water twice a day. The total dosage for a deficiency of own progesterone is about 200-300 mg.
With the threat of miscarriage, vaginal use of the drug is often prescribed - capsules are injected twice a day, the total dosage per day is 200-400 mg. You can take "Utrozhestan" in the first and second trimesters of pregnancy, at a later date, the drug is not prescribed.
Creams and gels
"Progestogel" (gel). The main active ingredient is progesterone. The drug is used exclusively externally. The agent does not have a systemic effect, it affects only at the place of rubbing. The gel is allowed to be used in the first trimester of pregnancy with breast tenderness, excessive swelling. Application must be agreed with the attending physician, because the effect of the gel on the fetus is still unknown to science.
Solutions for injection
"Progesterone". For injections, oil solutions of the hormone are used at a concentration of 1% and 2.5%. The dose required to maintain pregnancy against the background of a deficiency of its own hormone is determined by the doctor. Usually this is 2.5 ml, if a 1% solution is taken, or 1 ml of a 2.5% solution. The injection site hurts for some time after the procedure.
The drug is prescribed in the first trimester. If a woman's miscarriages are habitual, then the drug is taken continuously during the first four months of gestation, starting from 2-3 weeks of pregnancy.
Recommendations for expectant mothers
You cannot arbitrarily prescribe progesterone drugs to yourself, they must be prescribed and dispensed by a doctor.
The recommended doses should not be exceeded, this can lead to overdose and loss of pregnancy.
All drugs containing progesterone or other prostagens are contraindicated in women with kidney disease, liver disease, hepatitis, cirrhosis. You should not use such drugs even if the expectant mother has a tendency to thrombosis - thrombocytes are elevated in the blood, blood clotting is impaired.
Taking progesterone drugs is often accompanied by such side effects as increased drowsiness, light dizziness. With prolonged use, occasional bleeding from the genitals is possible. Usually this problem is solved by increasing the dose of the medicine, but it is very dangerous to make such a decision on your own.
Funds based on progesterone can somewhat reduce the craving for sexual relations, this should not be surprising either, especially since sex is most often contraindicated with the threat of miscarriage.
If a woman is simultaneously taking diuretics, as well as drugs that increase blood clotting, it is imperative to notify the doctor about this, because progesterone greatly enhances their main effect, which is not always desirable.
The hormone affects the mental state of a woman. She may experience mood swings, apathy, delayed reactions. Therefore, expectant mothers who work in high-risk conditions, as well as women who drive cars, should be extremely careful. It is advisable to stop driving a car and reduce the workload for the duration of progesterone treatment.
For most pregnant women, progesterone medications are prescribed in pills and capsules. In second place in popularity is the vaginal method of using some of the above medicines.
Only two out of ten women needing an increase in hormonal levels are recommended in the form of injections. In most cases, injections are combined with vaginal medication.
The obstetrician-gynecologist will tell you about the real purposes of determining progesterone during pregnancy, as well as the indications for prescribing progesterone drugs for pregnant women in the next video.
