What to expect when you're expecting Read Free Page B

doctors and checking out all your histories, ask if you can get a head start onsome of the tests and health workups every pregnant woman receives. Most are as easy as getting a blood test to look for:
Hemoglobin or hematocrit, to test for anemia.
Rh factor, to see if you are positive or negative. If you are negative, your partner should be tested to see if he is positive. (If you’re both negative, there is no need to give Rh another thought.)
Rubella titer, to check for immunity to rubella.
Varicella titer, to check for immunity to varicella (chicken pox).
Tuberculosis (if you live in a high- incidence area).
Hepatitis B (if you’re in a high-risk category, such as health-care worker, and have not been immunized).
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) antibodies, to determine whether or not you are immune to CMV (see page 503 ). If you have been diagnosed with CMV, it’s generally recommended you wait six months before trying to conceive.
Toxoplasmosis titer, if you have an outdoor cat, regularly eat raw or rare meat, or garden without gloves. If you turn out to be immune, you don’t have to worry about toxoplasmosis now or ever. If you’re not, start taking the precautions on page 80 now.
Thyroid function. Thyroid function can affect pregnancy. So if you have or ever had thyroid problems, or if you have a family history of thyroid disease, or if you have symptoms of a thyroid condition (see pages 174 and 531 ), this is an important test to have.
Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). All pregnant women are routinely tested for all STDs, including syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, herpes, human papilloma virus (HPV), and HIV. Having these tests before conception is even better (or in the case of HPV, getting the vaccine; see next page). Even if you’re sure you couldn’t have an STD, ask to be tested, just to be on the safe side.
    Get treated. If any test turns up a condition that requires treatment, make sure you take care of it before trying to conceive. Also consider attending to minor elective surgery and anything else medical—major or minor—that you’ve been putting off. Now is the time, too, to be treated for any gynecological conditions that might interfere with fertility or pregnancy, including:
Uterine polyps, fibroids, cysts, or benign tumors.
Endometriosis (when the cells that ordinarily line the uterus spread elsewhere in the body).
Pelvic inflammatory disease.
Recurrent urinary tract infections or other infections, such as bacterial vaginosis.
An STD.
    Update your immunizations. If you haven’t had a tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis booster in the past 10 years, have one now. If you know you’ve never had rubella or been immunized against it, or if testing showed you are not immune to it, get vaccinated now with the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, and then wait one month before attempting to conceive (but don’t worry if you accidentally conceive earlier). If testing shows you’ve never had chicken pox or are at high risk for hepatitis B, immunization for these diseases is also recommended now, before conception.If you’re under 26, also consider getting vaccinated against HPV, but you’d need to get the full series of three before trying to conceive, so plan accordingly.
    Get chronic illnesses under control. If you have diabetes, asthma, a heart condition, epilepsy, or any other chronic illness, be sure you have your doctor’s okay to become pregnant, your condition is under control before you conceive, and you start taking optimum care of yourself now (if you aren’t already). If you were born with phenylketonuria (PKU), begin a strict phenylalanine-free diet before conceiving and continue it through pregnancy. As unappealing as it is, it’s essential to your baby-to-be’s well-being.
    If you need allergy shots, take care of them now. (If you start allergy desensitization now, you will probably be able to continue once you conceive.) Because depression can interfere with conception—and with a happy,