Community Forum

I am pregnant for the first time and have been diagnosed with Crohns for 1.5 years. I have been taking Remicade for the majority of that time along with Pentasa. Has anyone else gone through a pregnancy while on Remicade? I am nervous because this is a first for me and I do not know any women that have Crohns personally to ask. I am a little worried also of being able to breastfeed my baby when the time comes, I really want to, but my husband mentioned (no researched done) that Crohns could be passed onto our children through breastfeeding them and he was not sure if he wanted us to take that chance. I do not want to "pass" Crohns onto anyone, least of all my children, but I also have always wanted to breastfeed and do not want to give up that opportunity either. Any advice or personal experience would be much appreciated. By the way, I am doing great on the Remicade and have not had a flare since august 2008!Thank you for all of your help.

 Reply posted for yondelle.

Another question. I am now 9 weeks pregnant and have started to have more discomfort/pain with my stomach/bowels. I am not sure if it is a flare up starting or if it has to deal more with gas caused from the pregnancy. I have not been taking my Pentasa since I was doing fine without it. When I started to have pain I didn't have any and my perscription expired and took over a week to get a new one and have it filled. I hope I can start it tomorrow and that it will help. Has anyone else had this problem? I had a treatment of Remicade on 10/30 and usually don't have any problems until the week before my next infusion, which is not until 12/11. I know that everyone is different but input is so helpful, just kind of knowing what to expect. Thanks for all your advice thus far.

 Reply posted for yondelle.

Does anyone know about taking Humira while pregnant?  I've read that it's ok if you really need (but would you even be taking it if you didn't need it?!) and it's not recommended while breastfeeding... but I thought it was pretty similar to Remicade also.  Has anyone been pregnant while on Humira?

 Reply posted for yondelle.

Hi I am 27 years old I have 2 kids!! I was diagnosed with CD when I was 12 years old!! :(..... I have a 5 year old and a 11 month old. I was on remicade for my second pregnancy, but I stopped taking the medicine 4 weeks before  I had her! the Dr. and I wanted to make sure the med. was out of my body by the time I had her that way i could breast feed and I did!:) she is a healthy baby! ... But I wont lie to you after I stopped my remicade I did end up in the hospital with a flare up , but everybody is different....and I had a c-section for both of my kids my GI told me I wasnt going to handle to have the babies natural! Today I just started my new Med. Cimzia  I am not longer taking remicade it gave me a few reactions!! Good luck with your pregnancy I hope I helped! God Bless you!

 Reply posted for durango18.

durango18,

I am 26 and I did not have trouble coming off of the birth control. I just stopped taking it after I was diagnosed with Crohn’s. I was tired of taking pills. I was on the birth control for 6 years and then we used alternative protection for another 1.5 years after I stopped taking it. We actively tried to become pregnant for 3 months. I was really afraid that we would have problems conceiving but we did not and are 6 weeks pregnant. I still cannot believe it. I talked to my GI doc and addressed my fears of having problems getting/being pregnant, he said that he had many patients with Crohn’s that became pregnant without having any problems. Me and my husband have said and continue to say a lot of prayers. I hope that you and your husband are able to conceive soon and that you do not have problems coming off of the birth control.

 Reply posted for yondelle.

Yondelle,

I am 24 and my husband and I are trying to conceive.  Did you have any trouble getting pregnant with the Crohn's and/or coming off birth control?

 Reply posted for yondelle.

to NWMOM

Thank you. The Remicade has worked really well for me and I do not want to get off of it. I read several other stories of people having flares during pregnancy and that is not something that I want to experience. It is good to know what the chances of our children getting Crohn's is. My husband does not have it, so that minimizes their risk. I will enjoy my baby and hopefully my pregnancy will go without any flares or other Crohn's related problems.

 Reply posted for yondelle.

Remicade is classified as a category B medication in the FDA ranking system. That means that it has been extensively used during pregnancy and it does not appear to cause birth defects or other problems. You would much rather continue on this treatment to remain in remission from your flares than to risk being sick while pregnant. Remicade is also considered safe during breastfeeding. You cannot pass on Crohn's disease through your breastmilk. If you alone have the illness your child only has a 4-9% chance of developing it during their lifetime. If you AND your partner both have it the chance increases to 36%. It is small enough to not worry about it. Enjoy your baby and know that you are making good choices to keep yourself healthy.