Lupus disease: can I get pregnant? what are the risks?

Lupus disease, or what is known as a thousand faces disease affects more than 1.5 million people in Indonesia. Women who have this disease may be afraid to get pregnant because they are worried whether it will have an effect on the health of the future baby. Then, what if you are pregnant and have lupus at the same time? What are the pregnancy complications that occur when you get lupus during pregnancy?

Can you get pregnant if you have lupus?

Lupus is a chronic disease characterized by an impaired immune system. In a healthy body, the immune system will attack foreign substances, whether viruses, microbes, or bacteria, that enter the body and endanger health.

Lupus causes the immune system to attack and paralyze body tissues such as muscles, skin, blood cells, brain, heart, lungs, and kidneys. This condition is an autoimmune disorder that makes sufferers susceptible to inflammation and infection.

Even so, don't worry if you have lupus, your chances of getting pregnant are the same as any other normal woman. But indeed, you need to plan a pregnancy very well in comparison to other healthy women. If you are planning to have children, you should first consult with your doctor and find out what are the risks that can occur if you have lupus during pregnancy.

What are some pregnancy problems that might occur if I have lupus?

Less than 50% of women with lupus experience pregnancy complications. But basically, pregnancy in women with lupus has a high risk of complications, so more vigilance is needed.

Following are the complications and risks of pregnancy that can occur in women who have lupus:

Miscarriage. This risk is very big when you enter the first trimester. It is known that about 10% of women with lupus have a miscarriage.
Antiphospolipid antibody syndrome, which is a condition in which blood clots around the placenta and causes the placenta to malfunction. This causes fetal development to be stunted.
Babies are born prematurely. Preterm birth can occur in 25% of women with lupus.
Babies are born with low body weight, that is, the body weight is less than 2500 grams.
Preeclampsia, which is characterized by high blood pressure and the presence of protein in the urine. These complications usually appear after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
High blood pressure, which can occur in the second and third trimesters.
Experiencing a lupus flarethat is, the symptoms and signs of lupus are getting worse. Usually characterized by swelling of one part of the body and reddening of the skin.
Neonatal lupus, which is a condition in which lupus symptoms are experienced in newborns. Newborns will experience reddish skin, impaired liver function, and lack of blood. This symptom mostly occurs in babies aged 18-24 weeks.

Therefore, you have to do check-up regularly to the doctor. You also have to be aware of the symptoms and complications that may occur during pregnancy.

Will my child also get lupus in the future?

Another thing to worry about after you give birth to a child normally is whether this disease can pass to the child. The risk of lupus being passed down to the child may exist. The opportunity for the emergence of lupus is indeed even greater if there are family members who have experienced lupus or other autoimmune diseases. Research states that having a family history of developing lupus increases the risk of this disease up to 20 times in the next generation.

But again, this is not a guarantee. There are still many factors that cause a person to develop lupus. Therefore, you must be more sensitive and pay attention to the health conditions of children. If your child experiences even mild symptoms or health problems, you should immediately take him to the doctor for further treatment.