Thrush during pregnancy: how to treat? Effective treatment of thrush in pregnant women

The harmless word "thrush" is a popular name for candidiasis. The disease occurs not only on the genitals, but also on other mucous membranes, for example, in the mouth, in the intestines, and even on the skin and nails. Often there is a thrush during pregnancy. How to treat this ailment for future mothers, so as not to harm the fetus? And in general, whether it is necessary to treat it? What is dangerous in it? To correctly answer the questions posed, let's get acquainted with the thrush closer.

What is Candidiasis

Its medical name was received from Candida albicans (Candida albicans), a group of conditionally pathogenic fungi. "Conditionally" means that they begin their destructive activity only under certain circumstances, for example, a decrease in immunity. This is not as good as it seems, because the disease can occur at any time, being a response to taking antibiotics, severe stress, even improper nutrition. In every second case thrush is recorded during pregnancy. How to treat it in this case and why is it so "not indifferent" to pregnant women? The answer is simple. Pregnancy is a condition in which a number of changes occur in the woman's body that are favorable for the growth and development of Candida. But where do they come from, if they were not pregnant before the pregnancy?

Ways of infection

Candida fungi live in harmony in each of us, getting into our body in the womb or during childbirth. In the future, we can catch them with food (milk, raw meat, unwashed vegetables and fruits) and with household items. Habitat kandid - oral cavity, vagina, large intestine. While these microorganisms are in a controlled quantity, they help the normal functioning of the body. The disease begins when there is an abnormal growth of fungal colonies. This is one reason. The second is an unprotected sexual intercourse with a sick candidiasis. If the second reason is absolutely excluded, but still suddenly there was a thrush during pregnancy, a woman should not panic and look for the guilty. Mushroom colonies in most pregnant women begin to grow strongly by themselves under the influence of certain factors.

Thrush: causes, treatment of the disease in pregnant women

Many future mothers did not suffer from thrush before pregnancy. The appearance of the disease was facilitated by:

- Reorganization of hormones and, as consequence, change of acidity of a vaginal secret;

- decrease in immunity due to increased loads on the body;

- psychological condition;

- Exercising large physical loads in a given period;

- changing the diet (pickles, marinades, sweets);

- unnecessarily frequent hygienic procedures, during which the necessary microorganisms are washed away from the mucous membranes;

- Some diseases (hemorrhoids, dysbiosis, constipation, colitis);

- use of antibiotics.

Symptoms

The first symptoms of thrush are poorly expressed and, as a rule, go unnoticed. These include minor itching of the external genitalia and an increase in the number of secretions. Now almost all women use hygiene pads, which make it difficult to control the volume of vaginal discharge. Therefore, to detect candidiasis at the initial stage of the disease can only be done by smear bacterioscopy.

If the first symptoms of thrush are somewhat blurred, then it is difficult not to pay attention to the further development of the disease . Women experience persistent itching of the external genital organs due to penetration of the candida into the mucosa. This itch usually increases with the wearing of synthetic underwear, after washings and urination, during sleep. Later, the walls of the vagina become inflamed, react painfully to any touch, urination passes with a sharp burning, pain, vaginal discharge becomes significant. Their color is white, with an unpleasant odor. In appearance, they resemble dense yogurt or curd bunches. Hence the name - "thrush". If you do not carry out treatment, you may have pain in the abdomen.

The danger to women

Many do not know what is fraught with thrush during pregnancy. How to treat the disease, tell the doctor. The future mother is obliged to follow all the instructions exactly.

A non-serious attitude to the problem leads to the following complications:

1. Threat of abortion. The incessant itching causes irritation, insomnia, headaches, increased pressure and an increase in the tone of the uterus.

2. Complicated delivery. Inflamed walls of the genital organs are poorly elastic, which causes numerous gaps in the process of delivery, and the seams are tightened tightly.

3. On the basis of candidiasis, the occurrence of other, more dangerous diseases is possible.

4. The birth of the firstborn with caesarean section during repeated pregnancy may be a divergence of the suture due to the thinning of the scar on the uterus.

Danger to the fetus

For the baby is also a serious threat to thrush during pregnancy. How to treat my mother, so as not to make worse than not yet born a crumb? Some women fear that treatment will do more harm than help. It is not right. Thrush can cause:

1. Delayed fetal development and pathological diseases of its internal organs.

2. Infection of the fetus with more dangerous microorganisms that appeared in the mother against a background of candidiasis.

3. Candida sepsis, often leading to the death of the fetus and the alreadyborn baby. An autopsy shows that in such children many internal organs, including the brain, are covered with a mycelium cobweb.

Treatment

We told you what causes the appearance of such a disease as thrush, the causes. Treatment of this insidious disease should be conducted only by drugs prescribed by a doctor. To determine which of the dozens of existing medicines will be most effective, special studies are conducted. The biomaterial, taken from a woman's smear, is placed on a medium that promotes the growth of the fungal colonies. In the future, they are affected by various means, selecting the most effective, and of them - the safest for the fetus. At the initial stages of the disease in the first trimester of pregnancy , Nystatin, Zalain, and Natamycin are recommended, which are applied exclusively locally, in the form of suppositories and ointments. In advanced cases, doctors prescribe tablets, as well as Clotrimazole. The price of this medicine of Russian production ranges from 40-50 rubles per ointment, 60-100 rubles per cream and 70-120 rubles per solution. There is also an imported drug, which differs from the domestic only at the price.

Safe drugs treating thrush

Like any medicine, antifungal agents have contraindications. Some drugs have more, others less. For example, "Nystatin" is practically non-toxic, poorly absorbed into the blood, because of what it is prescribed even to the newborn. It is contraindicated only to people with hypersensitivity to the components. The same can be said about Zalain. This drug is expensive, but with it, in just one or two applications, the symptoms of thrush pass.

"Nitamycin" or "Pimafucin" are among the most harmless, so do not be afraid to use them. Their shortcomings include longer duration of treatment and low efficiency in neglected cases. Excellent performance has "Clotrimazole". The price allows to use it to any category of pregnant women. However, this drug has a number of side effects, such as irritation of mucous membranes, pain in the lower abdomen, rashes on the body. It is desirable to use it only at the final stage of pregnancy.

Folk remedies

If the diagnosis is "thrush", home treatment only folk remedies will only bring harm. It is impossible to get rid of the fungus without using medicines. Traditional medicine suggests doing baths and syringing with decoctions of oak bark, chamomile, calendula, nettle, garlic, solutions of baking soda and iodine. These funds only for a while lead to a reduction in discomfort, without affecting the further development of fungi. Such apparent well-being helps the growth of Candida colonies and exacerbation of the disease. In addition, frequent douching during pregnancy can result in miscarriage. Treatment with folk remedies is advisable only in conjunction with the use of medications prescribed by a doctor.

It is important to remember that not only the future mother, but also the future father should be treated. Otherwise the disease will return again after a short time. After the termination of a course of therapy both spouses are obliged to hand over control analyzes.

How to avoid candida in pregnancy

Everyone agrees: it's best that you do not need to use any remedy, even the most effective from thrush and the most harmless. For this, the first and most important thing to do before conception is to give both spouses an assay for detecting any sexual infection in the body. This is particularly true of those who have already experienced similar diseases. In addition, for pregnant women there are a number of simple but effective recommendations:

1. To support immunity, eat plenty of fruits and vegetables.

2. Follow the chair, not allowing any constipation, or dysbiosis.

3. During the day, be sure to find time to relax, avoid lack of sleep and stress.

4. Hygienic procedures to perform without fanaticism, using only natural means.

5. To exclude carrying of synthetic linen and linings in a heat.

6. During periods of a spurt of colds, avoid visiting crowded places.

How not to treat candidiasis

If you follow all the recommendations of a doctor, it is not so terrible as thrush during pregnancy. The responses of patients who successfully coped with the problem are excellent proof of this. They all had healthy babies. However, there are still women who trust the advice of girlfriends, old recipes. Also there is a category of very shy women who can not overcome themselves and if they have an itch of the genitals, see a doctor. Such people prefer to be treated at home on their own. I would like to remind you that "grandmother's" remedies relieve symptoms only for a while, thereby driving the problem inside, complicating its further treatment and endangering the birth of a healthy baby.

Buying without prescription medications is also wrong, because only a doctor can determine which medication is appropriate in each case.

And it is completely unreasonable to leave candidiasis without attention, planning to get rid of it only after childbirth, so as not to harm the fetus with excess medicines. Such "care" about the baby can lead to his death.