suboxone & pregnant

[brklyn208]

I am 9 months pregnant and have been on suboxone for almost a year now. I have has tests done and a number of ultrasounds and the doctors say the baby is great. But I am really concerned about whether I should withdrawal before I have the baby or just have the baby. I have been doing some research on suboxone and infant withdrawal and so far have found that infants do not go through any withdrawal sysptoms. But it's not good enough for me. If there is anyone out there that could help me with what to do or give any advice please help me!!!

[brklyn208]

YES...YES...YES...that was the first thing I told my doctor at the first visit when I was 8 weeks pregnant!!!! And they know that it is a category C medicine...and if you read my previous comments I did say that all tests and ultrasounds were done and the baby is great!!!! The thing that i am worried about is the baby w/ding when she is born. I DO NOT abuse drugs I am on Suboxone as a maintence program. And I did not know that I could have just used it to detox and have been done with it. So when I found out tthat I was pregnant my doctor told me that it was my choice to stay on it, b/c tests came back ok and ultrasounds were great also. And they said that w/d that early in pregnancy can cause a miscarriage. So I waited and...it really scares me to w/d now b/c of stress on the fetus at least she can be monitored when born or not go through any w/d at all. I want to do the best thing for my child and I'm very scared and losing alot of sleep over this...i just sit and think about it all day long!!!

[avisg]

here is some more info .

Concerns regarding the use of buprenorphine in pregnancy
There is a lack of adequately controlled prospective studies of the use of buprenorphine in
pregnancy to establish the safety of the use of the medication.
Particular concern should be given to the following areas:
1. Babies born to women maintained on buprenorphine during their pregnancies may experience
a neonatal withdrawal syndrome related to buprenorphine.
A growing body of evidence is being collected regarding the association between buprenorphine
in pregnant women and the neonatal abstinence syndrome. There is insufficient data to comment
on whether this is more or less likely with buprenorphine than methadone, if or how the severity
and duration compare with methadone. The benefits of methadone maintenance treatment for
both the mother and the baby strongly outweigh the risks from the neonatal withdrawal
syndrome.
2. Respiratory depression in the newborn may also be associated with maternal use of
buprenorphine.
Buprenorphine crosses the placenta in amounts that may be reduced compared to maternal
circulation (Nanovskaya, Deshmukh et al. 2002). Buprenorphine may, therefore, cause
respiratory depression in the newborn infant. There are inadequate clinical data to describe this

[avisg]

plz tell your ob that you are taking it .

Suboxone is in the FDA pregnancy category C. This means that it is not known whether this medication will be harmful to an unborn baby. Use of this medication during pregnancy may cause withdrawal symptoms in a newborn baby. Do not take Suboxone if you are pregnant or could become pregnant during treatment. Suboxone passes into breast milk and may be harmful to a nursing baby. Do not take this medication if you are breast-feeding a baby.

[GoingToMakeIt]

PM 1234betterlife. She is an RN for an OB unit.

[toxictome]

Have you shared this info w/ your ob/gyn? If not, I would come clean w/ the dr.

I don't really know anything about it..

[brklyn208]

That would be great if you could find out more information for me....I just want to get one thing clear I DO NOT abuse drugs....and I have not for a year now...the only thing I know is that being on suboxone is like being on methadone...and I've heard that babies w/d from methadone is only a few days and sometimes not at all. But that is just what I've heard and read!! And i asked a doctor another forum what he thought would be best and he said not to w/d while pregnant it could be very stressful on the fetus and if the baby has to go through w/d that it would be better outside of the womb. But it still hasn't helped me. I live in PA. So if you could find anything out for me that would be great. My doctors do know that I am on this and I have had level 2 ultrasounds and various tests done and everything came back great she looked fine, so that was a relief !