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If you’re pregnant and you got a disease would it hurt the baby?

It depends on the disease. Many infections can be passed on to the fetus during pregnancy and many can affect the baby after it is born. Rubella (German measles) and toxoplasmosis (an infection picked up from handling raw meat or dirty kitty litter) are examples of infections that are very dangerous for the fetus.

There are also some sexually transmitted infections that can be passed to the fetus during pregnancy or to the infant during birth. These infections include

  • chlamydia
  • gonorrhea
  • syphilis
  • herpes
  • HIV

A woman who is pregnant should ask her health care provider to check for these infections. She also needs to talk with her provider any time she thinks she may have been exposed or have symptoms.

Tags: pregnancy

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