TY - JOUR T1 - Breathing for two: pregnancy, asthma and respiratory failure JF - European Respiratory Review JO - EUROPEAN RESPIRATORY REVIEW SP - 5 LP - 7 DO - 10.1183/09059180.00000914 VL - 23 IS - 131 AU - Mina Gaga AU - Eleftherios Zervas Y1 - 2014/03/01 UR - http://err.ersjournals.com/content/23/131/5.abstract N2 - Most women will happily swallow vitamins or iron supplements prescribed by their doctor during pregnancy and feel that these help build a strong baby, but are very reluctant to use other medications, and feel that these will jeopardise their fetus and produce congenital abnormalities. So, most expectant mothers will opt to forego medications they need, believing that this will be best for their baby. Sometimes, it is not just the pregnant women but doctors as well who may be unsure about the risks and benefits of drugs during pregnancy, and may fail to convince their patients about the importance of adhering to a required treatment regimen.Unquestionably, all medications should be prescribed with caution during pregnancy, especially in the first trimester, and data may be controversial even regarding the safety of widely prescribed supplements such as folic acid, maternal use of which has been associated with increased prevalence of childhood wheeze at 1 year of age although no other adverse outcomes have been reported [1]. Nevertheless, data show that uncontrolled chronic diseases are associated with adverse perinatal outcomes and, therefore, avoiding the use of tested safe medications increases the risk for both mother and fetus [2–6]. One of the most common chronic diseases affecting pregnant women is asthma, affecting up to 8.4% of pregnancies [2–4]. The goal of asthma treatment is the control of asthma, defined as having no symptoms, no exacerbations, no limitations of activities and a good quality of life with no future risk. In the case of asthma and pregnancy, the goal of treatment includes not only control of asthma but also a safe delivery and a healthy child. Exacerbations occur much more frequently and are more serious in untreated and uncontrolled disease and, therefore, maintaining control … ER -