By Bethany Kotlar, MPH, MotherToBaby Georgia **This information was current as of the time the blog was published. However, information is constantly changing. Please visit Zika Central for the latest information.** As a teratology information specialist, I counsel women and their families on medications, chemicals, herbal remedies, and illnesses that could harm developing babies. So as the Zika Virus, a viral infection that can cause severe birth defects including microcephaly (a condition …
The Baby Blog: Infections & Vaccines
Fighting The Bite: A Woman’s Guide to Avoiding Zika in Pregnancy
By Patricia Markland Cole, MPH, MotherToBaby Massachusetts **This information was current as of the time the blog was published. However, information is constantly changing. Please visit Zika Central for the latest information.** Zika, Zika, Zika……everywhere you turn someone is talking about Zika and it’s not hard to understand why. Last fall in Brazil, the cases began coming in with unusual frequency. Health care providers noticed an increase in babies born with small heads and small brains, …
Airborne Infections and Viruses: As If We Didn’t Have Enough to Worry About As Moms-To-Be
By Debra Goniwicha, MSW, MotherToBaby Georgia I have spent a significant portion of my career working in hospitals. Shortly after learning I was pregnant with my first child, I received a notice that I may have been exposed to an airborne illness while I was at work in the hospital Emergency Room. The notice advised me to report to occupational health for further testing. I flipped out! I was scared to death that my exposure would cause harm to my baby. I was mad at the world for exposing my …
How You Can Protect Your Baby from Pertussis “Whooping Cough” Before and After Birth
By Chelsea Flores Reviewed by Elizabeth Salas, MPH Are you currently pregnant? Are you aware of the risk of pertussis to your baby? Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, is a serious problem throughout California. Public health officials confirm our state is currently experiencing a pertussis epidemic. In 2010, there were more pertussis cases in California than had been reported in over 60 years with approximately 9,000 cases including 10 infant deaths. In 2014 10,831 cases were reported. …
