*Please Read* Obstetric Cholestasis

[leanne4stars]

i DO have OC back on all the tablets and twice weekly monitoring management plan tomorrow and looks likely my beanie will be here at 37 wks x this itching is driving me crazy not to mention the tiredness, sickness and nausea x

 

[nalini878]

think i have got this, been up all night itching like crazy, am beyond boiling and cooling down is the only thing that helps this itching!! just read up on it and apparently its even more likely if you are of Indian descent which I am. bloody hell, another thing to add to my list!!! going to see the dr this afternoon. xxx

 

[Maid Marian]

I've been itching for about 2 weeks now. Started just on my bump, but now I get it on my leg, my chin, and my arms. I read that itching is normal in pregnancy, so should I be concerned??

 

[heyyady]

My Dr won't even give me the test for it because I had my gahl bladder removed years ago- but from the reserch I've done on my own it its perfectly posssible to have it with no gb. :/

 

[Angel3000]

I just wanna say thank you to Jo for posting this, i didnt even know there was such a disorder, my midwife didnt say anything about it.
Thank you again

 

[tristansmum]

i got this late at 38+3 weeks. induced at 40 and delivered 40+1.

 

[eilamaiatua]

I'm ! i'm itching so much it hurts on my tummy and back mainly... my tummy drives me and no cream will soothe it However i was checked the other week for all liver functions etc and everything is fine ... its just this isn't the normal stretchy itching you get, i'm losing sensation where its itchy the most, which means scratching doesn't satisfy it at all as i can't feel it!

Its driving me mad and i wondered if anyone else on here thought it was OC and found it was something else??

 

[loz27]

I'm ! i'm itching so much it hurts on my tummy and back mainly... my tummy drives me and no cream will soothe it However i was checked the other week for all liver functions etc and everything is fine ... its just this isn't the normal stretchy itching you get, i'm losing sensation where its itchy the most, which means scratching doesn't satisfy it at all as i can't feel it!

Its driving me mad and i wondered if anyone else on here thought it was OC and found it was something else??

i would ask for your bloods to be retested again as i read that it can sometimes take several days from the onset of the itching for it to actually show up in ya bloods. i had several blood tests for this over a few weeks. its wortth just making absolutely sure.

 

[tristansmum]

I'm ! i'm itching so much it hurts on my tummy and back mainly... my tummy drives me and no cream will soothe it However i was checked the other week for all liver functions etc and everything is fine ... its just this isn't the normal stretchy itching you get, i'm losing sensation where its itchy the most, which means scratching doesn't satisfy it at all as i can't feel it!

Its driving me mad and i wondered if anyone else on here thought it was OC and found it was something else??

i agree. i had itching at 36 weeks and came back negative. retested at 38.5 and it was positive

 

[eilamaiatua]

I'm ! i'm itching so much it hurts on my tummy and back mainly... my tummy drives me and no cream will soothe it However i was checked the other week for all liver functions etc and everything is fine ... its just this isn't the normal stretchy itching you get, i'm losing sensation where its itchy the most, which means scratching doesn't satisfy it at all as i can't feel it!

Its driving me mad and i wondered if anyone else on here thought it was OC and found it was something else??

i agree. i had itching at 36 weeks and came back negative. retested at 38.5 and it was positive

Ok, well I have a midwife appointment next week so i'll ask to be re-tested then. Does OC have any other symptoms, especially to do with legs?

Thanks for the help

 

[tristansmum]

I'm ! i'm itching so much it hurts on my tummy and back mainly... my tummy drives me and no cream will soothe it However i was checked the other week for all liver functions etc and everything is fine ... its just this isn't the normal stretchy itching you get, i'm losing sensation where its itchy the most, which means scratching doesn't satisfy it at all as i can't feel it!

Its driving me mad and i wondered if anyone else on here thought it was OC and found it was something else??

i agree. i had itching at 36 weeks and came back negative. retested at 38.5 and it was positive

Ok, well I have a midwife appointment next week so i'll ask to be re-tested then. Does OC have any other symptoms, especially to do with legs?

Thanks for the help

well i just had extreme itching on my feet, low legs, arms, hands and bump. Spent my evenings with feet in bowls of cold water. once i got the tablets i was better and then i was induced a week later.

 

[Maid Marian]

I'm still waiting for my results, but it's getting worse on my legs. Agony!

 

[heyyady]

OK- My dr refused to give me the test on the basis that I had my gaul bladder removed several years ago- wnd yet the symptoms persisted. My girls were delivered at 32 weeks 3 days and who the heck knows now if OC was the cause (There was no other real reason for my PTL) and ALL symptoms - itching, dark urine, light stools, pain in upper right belly- went away within 72 hours of birth- ALL pointing to OC! After much reserch, it IS possible to get this without a gaul bladder as it is a LIVER malfunction! If you think you have this demand, stomp, throw fits, throw things and throw your Dr until you get the test!

 

[eilamaiatua]

OK- My dr refused to give me the test on the basis that I had my gaul bladder removed several years ago- wnd yet the symptoms persisted. My girls were delivered at 32 weeks 3 days and who the heck knows now if OC was the cause (There was no other real reason for my PTL) and ALL symptoms - itching, dark urine, light stools, pain in upper right belly- went away within 72 hours of birth- ALL pointing to OC! After much reserch, it IS possible to get this without a gaul bladder as it is a LIVER malfunction! If you think you have this demand, stomp, throw fits, throw things and throw your Dr until you get the test!

I have a docs appointment this afternoon so i will do all of the above so she listens, i haven't seen her before so for all i know she could be really good and decide to re test me straight away... i have a feeling i'm gonna have to be a human pin cushion again anyway lol.
Sorry to hear no one listened to you, at least your girls are ok, if a little early

 

[LadyofRohan]

Are there some cases of OC where there is a rash present?

I have had unbearable itching on the soles of my feet for the past few weeks or so. It is much worse at night...where I've now incoorporated a cool shower and rubbing anti-itch cream into my feet every night before I go to bed and it doesn't seem to help. I also sleep with the covers off my feet and the fan pointed at them to keep them cool. I wake up at least every hour because they itch so much.

There is a rash on both soles of my feet...it's not a raised rash with blisters or anything...it just looks like a thousand tiny pin pricks all over. I called up my midwife and she prescribed this cream that's supposed to help with the itching. It's anti-fungal as well so I think maybe she thought it might be athlete's foot or something??? She said to call in a few days if it doesn't work.

Well, it hasn't worked. I still have unbearably itchy feet and the cream doesn't seem to be helping...in fact now the rash has spread to the top of my feet!

But it's just my feet, the palms of my hands are a little red but they aren't itchy and I don't itch on my belly or anything.

 

[eilamaiatua]

Are there some cases of OC where there is a rash present?

I have had unbearable itching on the soles of my feet for the past few weeks or so. It is much worse at night...where I've now incoorporated a cool shower and rubbing anti-itch cream into my feet every night before I go to bed and it doesn't seem to help. I also sleep with the covers off my feet and the fan pointed at them to keep them cool. I wake up at least every hour because they itch so much.

There is a rash on both soles of my feet...it's not a raised rash with blisters or anything...it just looks like a thousand tiny pin pricks all over. I called up my midwife and she prescribed this cream that's supposed to help with the itching. It's anti-fungal as well so I think maybe she thought it might be athlete's foot or something??? She said to call in a few days if it doesn't work.

Well, it hasn't worked. I still have unbearably itchy feet and the cream doesn't seem to be helping...in fact now the rash has spread to the top of my feet!

But it's just my feet, the palms of my hands are a little red but they aren't itchy and I don't itch on my belly or anything.

from the little i know of OC that sounds suspiciously like it, you need to get your MW to listen to you and stick your feet in her face so she pays attention

I actually would suggest you get an appointment with your GP asap and ask to run some tests

good luck

 

[LadyofRohan]

I called the midwife and she said to just take some Benadryl

I have my 31 week appointment with her next week so I think maybe she's just trying to stave off until that appointment? But the thought of having to deal with this for five more nights is horrible.

I was able to play the pregnancy card and managed to get an appointment with my dermatologist in an hour! So maybe she can help me out. If not I'll have to wait until Tuesday when I can actually see the midwife.

 

[eilamaiatua]

I called the midwife and she said to just take some Benadryl

I have my 31 week appointment with her next week so I think maybe she's just trying to stave off until that appointment? But the thought of having to deal with this for five more nights is horrible.

I was able to play the pregnancy card and managed to get an appointment with my dermatologist in an hour! So maybe she can help me out. If not I'll have to wait until Tuesday when I can actually see the midwife.

from my limited knowledge (and people can feel free to correct me) i'm not sure your dermatologist can do anything because its not a skin complaint, its to do with bile collecting underneath the skin, therefore outside of the realms of your dermatologist. Although they could look at it and say that its something different, and therefore you can breathe a sigh of relief.

Just be prepared to put up with it for the next few nights until your MW appointment, but once you get to see her, DON'T LET HER FOB YOU OFF... don't leave the room until she has looked in to getting you some tests

 

[LadyofRohan]

I called the midwife and she said to just take some Benadryl

I have my 31 week appointment with her next week so I think maybe she's just trying to stave off until that appointment? But the thought of having to deal with this for five more nights is horrible.

I was able to play the pregnancy card and managed to get an appointment with my dermatologist in an hour! So maybe she can help me out. If not I'll have to wait until Tuesday when I can actually see the midwife.

from my limited knowledge (and people can feel free to correct me) i'm not sure your dermatologist can do anything because its not a skin complaint, its to do with bile collecting underneath the skin, therefore outside of the realms of your dermatologist. Although they could look at it and say that its something different, and therefore you can breathe a sigh of relief.

Just be prepared to put up with it for the next few nights until your MW appointment, but once you get to see her, DON'T LET HER FOB YOU OFF... don't leave the room until she has looked in to getting you some tests

I have my answer from the dermatologist. Apparently I have dyshidrotic
eczema, which are tiny blisters that form on the hands or feet. It's
pretty common in pregnancy to pop up, especially if you have a history
of eczema. So yeah, that anti-fungal cream that the midwife supplied
would do nothing. The dermatologist gave me some foaming cream to put
on it and a moisturizer and she said to take a Benadryl at night to help
calm the itching and it should go away in a week or so!

I still have my midwife appointment next Tuesday so I'll bring it up to her again but the dermatologist was pretty sure that the rash was definitely eczema, which is a relief!

 

[eilamaiatua]

I called the midwife and she said to just take some Benadryl

I have my 31 week appointment with her next week so I think maybe she's just trying to stave off until that appointment? But the thought of having to deal with this for five more nights is horrible.

I was able to play the pregnancy card and managed to get an appointment with my dermatologist in an hour! So maybe she can help me out. If not I'll have to wait until Tuesday when I can actually see the midwife.

from my limited knowledge (and people can feel free to correct me) i'm not sure your dermatologist can do anything because its not a skin complaint, its to do with bile collecting underneath the skin, therefore outside of the realms of your dermatologist. Although they could look at it and say that its something different, and therefore you can breathe a sigh of relief.

Just be prepared to put up with it for the next few nights until your MW appointment, but once you get to see her, DON'T LET HER FOB YOU OFF... don't leave the room until she has looked in to getting you some tests

I have my answer from the dermatologist. Apparently I have dyshidrotic
eczema, which are tiny blisters that form on the hands or feet. It's
pretty common in pregnancy to pop up, especially if you have a history
of eczema. So yeah, that anti-fungal cream that the midwife supplied
would do nothing. The dermatologist gave me some foaming cream to put
on it and a moisturizer and she said to take a Benadryl at night to help
calm the itching and it should go away in a week or so!

I still have my midwife appointment next Tuesday so I'll bring it up to her again but the dermatologist was pretty sure that the rash was definitely eczema, which is a relief!

WOOO!! congrats that its not OC and even better that it can be sorted pretty easily.