Getting pregnant with CF

Question

Dear expert team,

I would be interested to learn about the getting pregnant with CF. I am 24 years old and pretty stable. My FEV1 is at 70-89%, and I am 165cm tall and weigh 48kg.

I have thyroid hypofunction (2.89).

What about fertility? For a “normal woman,” there is a 25% chance of getting pregnant in each cycle. Is that also true for women with CF?

Also, the mucous in my lungs is rather viscous and I therefore take acetylcysteine 600mg. Does this also help make the cervical mucous more liquid?

Which other possible measures can I take to make it work? I do have a regular cycle, mostly between 28 and 31 days.

Kind regards.

Answer

Hello,

Reader/Assistant Professor Dr. Doris Staab, Charité/Berlin University Hospital (Head, Christiane Herzog CF Centre) provided the following answer to your question:

“(…) as far as I can judge this patient’s situation, there are no objections to a pregnancy. Monitoring the thyroid function will have to have priority.

According to the literature, the likelihood of getting pregnant is probably slightly reduced. A further option would be in-vitro insemination.

Concerning the physical condition: The weight does not seem to be very high given the body height mentioned; I would therefore first focus on optimizing the dietary situation (this will also increase the chances of getting pregnant).”

Kind regards,
Annette Pfalz for ECORN-CF

02.08.2012