New Mum Warns Others After Common Itching Problem During Pregnancy Almost Killed Her Baby

A new mother has warned pregnant women not to ignore common itching problems during pregnancy after she almost lost her baby due to a bad itch when she was pregnant.

Christina DePino, 28, from Michigan in the US, was on her third trimester when she began experiencing really uncontrollable itchiness that she was unable to sleep at night.

“The itching was so severe that I would wake up and I wouldn’t be able to go back to bed, and my legs and arms were scabbed and bleeding from the uncontrollable need to scratch,” she told CBS News.

Although itching when pregnant could mean that the skin is just stretching, Christina asked for advice from her friends on social media who told her that it might be a symptom of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP), a condition which can occur in late pregnancy and triggers intense itching, usually starting on the hands and feet and spreading to other parts of the body. It impairs the flow of bile from the liver and could cause a baby to be stillborn after 37 weeks.

So, Christina went to her doctor and after having blood tests, she was diagnosed with the condition at 36 weeks pregnant.

She was told that it was caused by high hormone levels during pregnancy, interrupting the communication of the gall bladder and the liver, causing bile to back up into the bloodstream.

She was also told that for babies, complications from cholestasis of pregnancy can be severe. It increases the risk of a baby being born prematurely or worse, foetal death late in pregnancy.

“My doctor explained that while not all the reasons are understood, after 37 weeks, patients with ICP are at a very high risk of having a stillborn. He also explained that induction was still my choice, as it is possible to carry a baby to full term and not have a stillborn,” she said.

So, the week after she was diagnosed, Christina got induced and gave birth to a healthy baby girl.

Now, Christina wants to spread awareness to other expectant mums not to ignore itching problems during pregnancy. “Don’t ignore the itch. A simple blood test could save your baby’s life,” she said.

She also took to Facebook post, which has gone viral, to warn other pregnant women about the risks of ICP.

“If your [sic] pregnant and your [sic] itching REALLY bad, don’t ignore it,” the viral post reads.

“Started having severe itching a few weeks ago, (it was keeping me up at night) thanks to a little Facebook complaining, I got the itch checked out and found out I had pregnancy cholestasis, which is basically harmless for me – except for the crazy itching – but could have caused a stillborn after 37 weeks.”

“Thanks guys for giving some amazing advice which may have just saved our precious girl’s life!” DePino wrote in the post. “Yeah we are SO BLESSED & in awe!!!” she wrote.

Christina also included a link to ICPcare.org and said she’ll be known as “the crazy lady running around telling all the preggie ladies to beware!”

Her post has been shared more than 27,000 times.

Sources: News.com.au and Kidspot.com.au

If you become concerned about any symptoms, please seek immediate medical attention we have some hotlines and suggested websites for further information and advice https://www.stayathomemum.com.au/my-kids/babies/important-hotlines-websites/