Expert: Pat G - 7/31/2009

Question
Dear Doc

We are living in middleeast and we didnt wanted to continue with my wife's pregnancy however due to no medical aid is available in this part of the world she took Cytotec for 2 Days with suggestion from some doc from abroad. However she is still having the baby and she stoped

Now I am concerned about mothers health and dont know what the next step should be. Need your advice..

Need your advice at the earliest

Thanks


Regards


Answer
Hello, SAAZ,

I'm sorry you are in this situation. Taking Cytotec by itself rarely works, however. Since you are married, there is no reason why you shouldn't have a child. And if the Cytotec didn't work, the odds are very great everything will be fine. The chances of problems are remote.

Perhaps for whatever reason, you didn't want a child, but you do have one, although very young and tiny. When you see your baby for the first time, everything will change. It's a responsibility, but it is also a great joy.

In a sense, you both are very lucky, because you live in a country and a culture that still cherishes its children, and protects the women from the kind of exploitation that abortion represents. Your culture is vibrant, while other cultures where abortion is readily available are dying.

In my opinion that doctor who gave you that advice from a distance committed malpractice. To begin with, the manufacturer of Cytotec says it should never be used by a pregnant woman. One reason is because there are several ways it can kill a woman, and sometimes it only takes hours. For another thing, it is just plain bad medicine to prescribe without examining someone and taking a good medical history, and obviously, this cannot be done at a distance.

Take care of your wife. Help her to get through this; she will probably have some doubts and she needs your support. She is carrying your child. The emotional consequences of abortion are high, and so are the emotional consequences of trying to have one. Nurture and cherish her. She is carrying the product of your love.

Let me know how you do. If you need any other kind of help, I will see what I can do. But please cherish and protect her.

Take care.