Pregnancy & TB Testing Exposure

Pregnant women who currently live, or have lived, in a region where tuberculosis is common may be encouraged by their health care provider to have a tuberculosis screening test, in addition to standard prenatal screening tests.

TB testing is considered safe during pregnancy.

The Facts

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), tuberculosis (TB) is a disease that usually attacks the lungs, but can attack any part of the body, such as the kidney, spine or brain. TB is fatal if not properly treated and was once the leading cause of death in the United States.

Types

Two types of tests can be administered to detect TB infection in pregnant women: a skin test (TST) and a TB blood test, which is relatively new and less common. If a skin or blood test result is positive, it indicates the presence of TB bacteria, but does not determine if the person has TB disease.

Features

The skin test is performed by injecting a small amount of harmless fluid under the skin on the inside of the arm. The patient must return in two to three days in order for a health care professional to exam the area for redness or swelling, which is indicative of a positive result.

Treatment

Untreated TB presents a greater risk to pregnant women and their unborn fetus than its treatment. Treatment usually last for nine months and consists of daily or twice weekly doses of isoniazid for those with laten TB infection (LTBI), or more rigorous treatment for those with TB disease.

Warning

Women who suffer from untreated TB throughout their pregnancy may have low birth weight babies and may pass the disease to their infant. According to the CDC, drugs used to treat TB may pass through the placenta, but do not appear to harm the fetus.

References

• Centers for Disease Control