• Welcome to Crohn's Forum, a support group for people with all forms of IBD. While this community is not a substitute for doctor's advice and we cannot treat or diagnose, we find being able to communicate with others who have IBD is invaluable as we navigate our struggles and celebrate our successes. We invite you to join us.

Pregnant with Crohn's on Remicade

Hello! I am 3 1/2 months pregnant. My doctor told me remicade was totally fine to take except the last 2 months of pregnancy. Today I asked my doctor what her thoughts were on breastfeeding while on remicade. She was not 100% sure of the answer..she then proceeded to tell me she has never treated a crohn's pregnant woman on remicade....so this sort of concerned me! I don't want to be a guessing game!! So does anyone have experience with this? Remicade while pregnant in general...Also remicade and breast feeding..yes or no?? I would appreciate any responses! Thanks so much :)
 
Hi. I was just diagnosed with Crohns and I'm 15&1/2 weeks pregnant. They said the pregnancy brought out the CD in me. I also started taking remocade. My doctors said its a B drug so it shouldn't hurt the baby but I also read that some of my meds aren't good for Breastfeeding. I'm scared for the health of my baby. I had three miscarriages and the doctor said the crohns may have caused them. I just spent 9 days in the hospital being diagnosed with CD and they said the baby was fine. I guess I don't have the answers to your question but I'm so relieved I'm not the only pregnant crohns even though I'm terribly sorry you have this stupid disease.
 
Ahhh I am sorry you were just diagnosed! Crohn's can be rough. I have had it since I was 11, so I am a Crohn's pro haha... If you got pregnant while the Crohn's was in a flare it could potentially cause a miscarriage. Just make sure to take care of yourself, and your baby will be fine :) Believe it or not, a lot of women go into remission when they are pregnant! Feel good and take it easy :)
 
From the prescribing info on Remicade
8.3 Nursing Mothers
It is not known whether REMICADE is excreted in human milk or absorbed systemically after ingestion. Because many drugs and immunoglobulins are excreted in human milk, and because of the potential for adverse reactions in nursing infants from REMICADE, women should not breast-feed their infants while taking REMICADE. A decision should be made whether to discontinue nursing or to discontinue the drug, taking into account the importance of the drug to the mother.
http://www.remicade.com/hcp/prescribing-information

http://www.pregnancystudies.org/ this site has some info on remicade in pregnancy. It looks reputable but " should not take the place of medical care and advice from your health care professional."

Best wishes!
 
Wow well that sucks. Either we take the medicine or we Breastfeed. Not very fair. I hate crohns. Btw I started my flair about a month after i found out I was pregnant. Doctor said the baby made the crohns pop out in me.
 
I had babies on Remicade then Humira. I got the same info from your doctor. OK to take except the last two months. She made me get approval from my pediatrician as to whether I could go back on it while breastfed. He said no way.

I breastfed my kids for 3 months then switched to formula so I could get back on the drugs.
 
I don't have any advice re. the breastfeeding. Have you tried contacting the lactation consultant at your hospital? Kellymom.com was a good resource when I was breastfeeding.
 
Where are you all located?

In Ontario, we have a program called Motherisk, run out of Sick Kids' Hospital in Toronto. You can call the helpline and get a personalized risk assessment -- skilled researchers comb the medical literature (they have standing files on a lot of things) and let you know what the potential risks are for your situation. It may be worth a call. (There are both 1-877 and local numbers).

A few years ago, I attended a seminar run by a local Crohn's and Colitis group that featured a number of OB/Gyns talking about Crohn's. The general consensus was that the drugs I was on were low risk during pregnancy -- I believe there was a slightly higher than normal risk of a baby being born with a cleft palate from the prednisone, but that's not a huge problem -- I know a number of great people who were also born with this issue. As to Remicade, they were saying not to discontinue it during pregnancy, and that it was not a problem for a healthy birth. But nobody could answer my questions about whether any problems were likelier to develop *after* birth with kids whose moms were on Remicade. There were no longitudinal studies at the time. Maybe there are some now. It's something you can ask if you call Motherisk.

(In the meantime, I haven't been looking into this at all).
 
hi, im 27 weeks pregnant, i av not stopped my remicade until baby is born, my doc said i can still breastfeed while on remicade there just not sure about breastfeedin while on azathioprine while im aslo on, ive had no problems so far :) baby is doin well :) xx
 
Glad to hear that! I'm 21 weeks pregnant. Congrats! I'm not on remicade now but my doc recently said it was ok to Breastfeed on it, too. I do take bentil and cannot Breastfeed on that. She said it will mess with my milk production. My baby is healthy but I'm still having a bad flare and they can't tell what's really going on until the baby is born so I guess I'll keep having a flare until lil bundle of joy is here. 😿
 
Following. How are things going for everyone? I have had 3 healthy babies while I've had Crohn's. Currently 8 wks preg with number 4!! Had a resection earlier this year. Felt great for a few months. Had a miscarriage in September. Colonoscopy 2 weeks ago showed disease is rearing it's ugly head again so I need to start Remicade. For some reason I'm terrified of this drug and very worried about my baby. Supposed to have my first loading dose in 2 days!
 

Catherine

Moderator
it understandable that your worried about the baby but everything I have heard and read points to out control Crohn beiing worse than meds for the baby.
 

my little penguin

Moderator
Staff member
Hugs
I can say I fought tooth and nail to breastfeed my Ds .
And keep the evil formula away from him at all costs
Had eliminate many foods due to his Gi issues ( now know is Crohn's) while nursing .
When he was dx with we ended up adding formula to help with the crohns nutrition and growth.
I am not saying to not breastfeed
But sometimes you need to look at it for what is food and nothing more
Bonding will still happen with your kiddo and a healthy mom who can hold a kiddo and play peek a boo is much better than one trying to get back to remission purely from trying to breastfed med free .

No one should have to make the choice but I know plenty of kiddis who had to have amino acid formula due to severe gi issues breastmilk was not an option.
They have grown and are doing well

Good luck
 
Hi, well my daughter arrived a month early and perfect :) i did breastfeed for the first week but it didnt work out i couldnt produce enough milk :/ i am now waitin to restart my infliximab which im hopin aint to long as my crohns is startin to play up! good luck to everyone trying to conceive and to everyone who is pregnant i wish u all the best :) xx
 
I have two boys and with my last one I had to be on remicade. It was a very hard choice to put a medication in my body that I thought could harm my child, for that reason I did NOT breast feed( with either). Having crohns and not being able to absorb nutrients like a "normal" person should, my child benefitted from being bottle fed anyways. Being pregnant and not being on your meds is the worst thing you could do- I did it with my first son. I stressed out so much about putting meds in his system. Had a very difficult pregnancy! Drink your fluids too! Hope everything goes well.
 
Top