Spinal cord injury and pregnancy

Abstract

Pregnancy in women with spinal cord injury is considered high risk because it may exacerbate many of their existing problems, including autonomic dysreflexia, spasms, decubitus ulcers, urinary tract infections and respiratory infections. Due to the relative rarity of spinal cord injury in the general obstetric population, clinicians often lack familiarity of these specific problems and the women themselves are usually more experienced in their own management than their obstetric team. However, studies have demonstrated that pregnancy outcomes are generally good with appropriate and experienced obstetric care. In this review, we examine the available literature and provide advice on pre-conception counselling and the antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal management of pregnant women with spinal cord injury.