Mother and baby die due to drug given in hospital...

@astromama (1221)
United States
March 19, 2007 1:01am CST
At birth class this evening my instructor passed around an article (I didn't get a copy so I'm not exactly sure the name of the drug.. I will look it up and post the name) about a young woman and her baby who died recently as a result of the drug they gave her during labor. She was only administered this drug, not anything else, and she died of a condition caused by the amniotic fluid getting into her bloodstream. Her baby was over 8 pounds and until the labor she had NO complications and was very healthy. The drug given states clearly on the package that it can cause abortion and is not safe for pregnancy as it causes a number of problems, including perforation of the placenta. However, in the Kansas City area at least 4 hospitals we know of still give this drug (which was FDA approved for blood pressure or something) to laboring women despite the fact they know it is unsafe. It is not a drug intended for labor, but so long as a drug is FDA approved, it can be used by a doctor for pretty much anything. This seems so irresponsible to me! Do you think it's right to entrust a doctor with prescribing medications that don't fit the situation? A girl and her baby DIED. It seems to me that allowing a doc to prescribe whatever medication they want to, regardless of the intended purpose of the drug, is extremely dangerous and allows for zero accountability on the docs part. How would you feel if you knew your doctor prescribed you something he KNEW could kill you or your baby? What should be done about these hospitals that are giving pregnant women these medications?
3 people like this
2 responses
@eden32 (3973)
• United States
21 Mar 07
In the mid-70s the FDA rescinded it's approval of a medication commonly used in labor- yet it's still one of the most commonly used medications in hospital births. Pitocin is used in up to 81% of births in the US (sometimes to get things started, sometimes to speed things up and sometimes to get the placenta out quicker) and it's not approved by the FDA for any of this.
1 person likes this
@lillake (1630)
• United States
19 Mar 07
Wow, that is so scary! That's as scary as the women who got a staph infection in the hospital and lost both of her arms. Imagine having a baby that you'll never be able to hold because of an incompitent hospital. *shudders* At least i know having a baby at home no one is going to give me anything or infect me.
1 person likes this