Could Obstetric Drugs cause Autism? | Autism PDD
This is a really intense subject but check out this.
http://lib.bioinfo.pl/pmid:15288368
We need more research on whether oxytocin, Pitocin, Syntocinon and epidurals given to laboring mothers can cause Autism.
I've never had ANY of these with either of my kids I was induced w/ds because he was about 10 days late. I think it was pitocyn that I was given.The pitocin put Payne in fetal distress and the narcotics (they gave me after I explicitly told them not to) put us BOTH in distress. I was incoherant the majority of the 15 hours I was in labor. My dh said they came in on 3 SEPERATE occassions to C-section Payne b/c we were both doing AWFUL!
I got hallucogens with Andrew cause he was in distress (they had induced him since my water had broke with his brother and I was there, they decided to take Andrew too). Inducing a 30 weeker is not a good idea. Actually I never should have had them naturally. The epi wore off and I was feeling it and they couldn't wait so they gave me hallucogens so I would forget I was awake. Funny though Nikolas has many more symptoms than Andrew without the pitocin and drugs.I had pitocin. I was at my due date with the boys (not a typical occurance in a multiple birth) and I was induced because they were simply running out of room in there! (They were 6 lbs. 3 oz. and 7 lbs. 14 oz. at birth.)
My middle daughter was induced with Pitocin and I had an epidural with her and she is perfectly fine.
Both of my babies were induced with Pitocin and I had epidurals with both kids. I remember with my older son the induction was rough and he wasn't do well. Similar to what Payne's Mom described. The thought about going in and getting him but didn't.I also had Pitocin for an induced birth and also an epidural -
One more thing to feel guilty about
Couldnt be the case. I had severe migraine headaches with both boys pregnancies and was on a high dose pain killer up to the 8th month...neither boy is Autistic (hence that boys are more prone to AUTISM!) but with Grace, I did not suffer with these headaches, and never took painkillers!I had pitocin with Eric and my oldest. I also had Nubian with all 3 of my kids. No epidural tho. I wonder---just like you---if it has something to do with it. I will agree that environmental factors play a role somehow!
MommaNiki
I had pitocin and epidurals with all 3 boys. So far, only 1 on the spectrum.I had terbutaline round the clock (every 4 hours) starting at 24 weeks due to excessive contractions. I was also on full-time bedrest. My water broke at exactly 36 weeks and I had a scheduled c-section with an epidural 4 hours later. I feel fairly confident that the terbulatine contributed to my son's autism based on previous studies conducted by Dr. Andrew Zimmerman of Kennedy Krieger Institute, per the following link:
http://www.cureautismnow.org/atf/cf/{0FE985F1-B3E3-476B-92EF -73240E60AF4D}/ADVANCES_FALL2006.PDF
See pg. 11
There's a recent discussion started by Linda 11256 about Prematurity and Autism. In there, I have some articles listed - and a medical search site - that talk about prenatal, peri-natal (fetal), and neo-natal conditions that statistically show up more with kids on the spectrum. If this topic interests you, check out the other.
Inducing labor, c-sections, epidurals, cords around the neck, seriously preterm birth - like more than 8 weeks early, overdue babies (they ingest merconium), recurrent bleeding during 2nd and 3rd trimesters, older moms & dads, neonatal asphyxia, and other events that threaten the fetus all show a correlation with higher incidences of autism. These things probably don't cause autism but could act as a catalyst for genetically at-risk babes. Maybe - horrible thought here - mother nature is trying to weed out the weak.
Perhaps some of the moms have obstetric trouble because natural selection is trying to thin the herd of children who will need extra help surviving. Please don't hate me for being so clinical. I saw a documentary from Queens College in the UK that said pre-eclampsia (big reason for preterm birth) may be due to a goofy autoimmune problem in the mom. Her body regards the unborn baby - with its DNA different from the mothers - as a foreign body that it tries to rid itself of. This doesn't fit most of the obstetric issues above, but the film did give me pause. There are newer articles out there that suggest autoimmune disorders may shed light on autism, so that sort of ties together.
Our son was 14 weeks early due to pre-eclampsia (Cole's now 6 & doing awesome except for PDD NOS) so of course, I've read like a fiend on obstetric issues & autism. Yes, there is a correlation, but not a proven cause-effect linkage. At least we have another piece of the jigsaw to add to the puzzle.
-LeAnne
My oldest was induced and he is NT.
My dd with pdd-nos was natural 100%..born on her due date, no epidural, no inducing...nothing. However, she did get the hep B and I nursed her (with all my fillings
My son has classic autism and I had pitocin and an epi from the very start of a 14 hour labor (ob's recommendation, I was in kinda bad shape at that point). That was on top of a load of other drugs due to the preterm labor. The one I was on particularly heavy doses of was called procardia (nifedipine), a BP medication. I have tried to look up the procardia online, only thing I have really found is that no studies have been conducted on pregnant women. Seems a bit scary. Anyone heard anything about this?
As an aside..I had never heard about the nursing/dental filling thing. I nursed for 16 months, but I believe that all my fillings are of the porcelain/composite variety. But I would not have known.
Out of my 4 kids--the first one is the only delivery in which I had been induced--both gel and pitocin, all pain injections possible, all IV meds possible, epidural, water break for over 12 hours, I ran a fever, baby had high heart rate by the end, because of my fever. She ended up on IV antibiotics because of my fever. And.......she is totally NT.
My other 3 kids were 100% natural, no meds, no IV's, not even a heplock. 1 is ASD, the other is bipolar.
WHile I feel that is a possibility with some moms, it wasn't the case with both of my children. Both of my deliveries were natrual and mostly unmedicated. I did accept Stadol aroudn 5cm with both kids, but that only lasted a couple hours and didn't really eliminate the pain.
Helon obviously had the signs as a infant, but I feel it was related to the Hep B injection given on the second day of her life...and her greadual regression seemed to occur with each round of vaccination.
Phillip was NT up until he was 12 mos and regressed after his vax. He regressed severely after his MMR to the point where the therapists and specialist who were monitoring him indicated that it was autism.
We do have autoimmune disorders running in our family and both of my kids have heavy metal poisoning for which we are treating now.
I had pitocin and an epidural with both of my guys.. Tobi is on the spectrum and nathan is very typical..I was induced with both my kids. I'm not sure if it was oxytocin or pitocin. Not fun. Relentless but ineffective labor. I didn't have an epidural.
I didn't want to be induced, but really had no choice. In both cases, I was past my due date and my water had broken more than 24 hours before. Almost nobody gets a c-section here in Norway.
From the link you posted, it looks like they're suspicious of oxytocin mostly because of experiments on mice. It will be interesting to see if what conclusions can be eventually made about actual humans.
First child all natural...nt. Sarah was suppose to be over 8 pounds and OB stated I needed to be induced..she was only 7.4 poundsI had pitocin and went from no dialation to having had him in less than 2
hours. (Induced due to high BPP) Evil stuff, I do believe I had seizures
from it. The nurse only poked her head in after I already started pushing
and I only push for four minutes. So yes, I would not be surprised if the
pitocin was involved.I had pitocin and epidurals with both and both had the Hep B shot at birth. Maria is a very NT girl and Alec, PDD-NOS. I was always curious about clomid and other infertility drugs which I used with both.
I was induced for Nick, though, b/c he was showing fetal distress. And I did have an epidural b/c inducement hurts way more than natural, even though, for me, it was a day faster.
I had Mag Sulfate and Terbutaline and many asthma drugs that were not the safest drugs. I don't know whether they can cause autism or not. I did have Pitocin with my daughter, but I still am not sure if she is on the spectrum. She definitley has issues but I don't know about spectrum. My son though is definitely on the spectrum and the Mag Sulfate and Terbutaline were used during pregnancy with him.
Iwas on ZOFRAN during pregnancy - bec I had sever nausea to the point I couldn't stomach anything..
Zofran is given to radioation patients - who suffer intense nausea.
And since I was put on high risk due to 2 misccariages before my dd was born, there were a ton of ultrasounds done on me... one of them showed ' ehcogenic focus on the heart' - Fearful that it could be 0.00001% related to down syndrome or whatever - I had an amnio done which checked out JUST FINE!
And dd WAS fine till a few months ago
They are trying to understand why women's bodies revolt so terribly with pre-eclampsia and for that, I am thrilled. Until the doctor tells you - at 26 weeks of pregnancy - that they have to cut the baby out, or you will both die, you cannot know what severe pre-eclampsia feels like. You know what the diagnosis of autism feels like, so maybe you can imagine this too.
Physically, I felt awesome, just puffy. There was no discomfort when my liver and kidneys were dying off. The blood pressure of 240/210 didn't faze me a bit. That's what pre-eclampsia can be like, and had I not gone to the doctor because of my sudden weight gain, my epitaph would've been written 6 years ago.
If brilliant and caring neonatalogists - like those at Queens College - had not taken care of my one pound child, he'd be buried with me. I owe it to all neonatalogists everywhere to stand up for them, particularly when its my own words that may have accidentally misconstrued their work. There's a universe of difference between Natural Selection and bizarre, horrid theories from 1940's dictators. I see God as the conductor of the natural world, and neonatalogists trying to save babies and mothers are his instruments, too. Queens College is just one tiny symphony. I'm sorry if my posting misconstrued that.
[QUOTE=LeAnne C]
These things probably don't cause autism but could act as a catalyst for genetically at-risk babes. Maybe - horrible thought here - mother nature is trying to weed out the weak.
Perhaps some of the moms have obstetric trouble because natural selection is trying to thin the herd of children who will need extra help surviving.
[/QUOTE]
I feel documentaries and opinions like this are dangerous to the developmentally disabled community. It's probably coincidental and doesn't really show a cause for autism at all. I believe there can be many causes for developmental delays, but many human beings with developmental delays are doing great things. All I have to is look at my son and the progress he's made, and I know there's a reason he's alive. The fact that people are trying to prove these politically motivated Hitler type theories doesn't do anything for autism research.
"I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvellous (are) thy works; and (that) my soul knoweth right well." Psalm 139:14
No hate toward you at all, you're just looking for answers as we all are.
Maybe - horrible thought here - mother nature is trying to weed out the weak.
Perhaps some of the moms have obstetric trouble because natural selection is trying to thin the herd of children who will need extra help surviving.
I would have to disagree. I think a lot of obstretic trouble comes from drugs given to the mother for the convenience of the doctor, scheduling of the hospital staff and comfort of the mother without telling the mother what the possible risks to her baby may be. No one is researching this because there is no money to be made in finding out that drugs used in Obstetrics are detrimental. There is a huge industry out there promoting the use of drugs that have NOT BEEN PROVEN SAFE FOR THE BABY and no one is paying attention.
LeeAnn C, it was the terminology used that prompted me to give my opinion. I didn't intend to be insensitive to your experience with pre-eclampsia. I tend to look at ethics first, then medical data. I cannot begin to imagine what it is like to have pre-eclampsia, and I'm glad you are healthy, thanks to your doctors knowledge, and able to share your experience with us.Pitocin (oxytocin) has not approved by the FDA for the elective induction or stimulation of labor.
How many times has a doctor scheduled mother for an elective induction without mentioning that the Pitocin, that he/she would use to induce it, was not FDA approved for that purpose?
If you want to do more reading on this, go to:
http://www.aimsusa.org/ and look at FDA APPROVED OBSTETRICS DRUGS:
THEIR EFFECTS ON MOTHER AND BABY
I was pretty shocked by what concernedmother wrote, so I checked the Merck manual (http://www.merck.com/mmpe/lexicomp/oxytocin.html).
U.S. bottles of pitocin/oxytocin have to be marked "To be used for medical rather than elective induction of labor." The warning also includes a bunch of adverse reactions, and that's just the short list! The warning doesn't even mention the effects on the fetus/newborn which are listed at Merck.
It's basically considered for emergency use only, and it definitely wasn't elective use in my case. But I certainly wasn't asked to give my informed consent! No one mentioned anything about risks to me. I also was running a fever and no one told me about this. I didn't find out until the 6 week postpartum check.
With my eldest son, I was deadset against being induced, and delayed as long as I could. The doctor agreed to delay, and the midwife grudgingly agreed. Given my condition after the birth (fainted twice), I regretted not listening to the midwife and inducing sooner, but I don't regret it after reading this!
Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
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