Obstetric Cholestasis

[StealthPolarBear]

Bear with me while I offload my symptoms APologies for TMI - don't read while eating!

I am 27 weeks pregnant.
On Wednesday I started feeling sick, and lunchtime I was sick. Have spent Wednesday/Thursday/Friday feeling sick (on and off), tired and worn out. Was sick again on Friday night. Spent yesterday afternoon with a bad stomach but not feeling sick. Had diarrhoea this morning and noticed pale stools a couple of hours ago (not diarrhoea). Since I started feeling ill, my urine has been incredibly dark which I put down to not drinking enough, but it's darker than the usual throwing up dehydration I think.

I googled, and this is what came up. Except I haven't had any itching at all. It also sounds as though even if I do have it, it's not really anything to worry about (that was from the NHS website). I'm going to make a
GP appointment for this week but just wanted to see what MN-ers thought, and whether I should be dealing with this more urgently?

Flipping NHS website. OC can be very serious for the baby and the only cure for mum is delivery of the baby.

Please call your midwife asap.

It doesn't sound like my OC symptoms at all - which were insomnia, feeling very hot, intense itchiness on soles of feet/palms of hands. However, if I were you, I would call NHS Direct immediately. OC can be quite serious if not managed.

really?

OC is very rare and associated with severe itching. You are probably just a bit dehydrated and your body is coping with it differently to how it does when you are not pregnant. I wouldn't bother with nhs direct, they will just tell you to call your gp or mw. If you are worried call your gp tomorrow morning.

Pale stools and dark urine could be symptoms of other liver problems.

Call your midwife.

Obstetric Cholestasis can be lethal if not actively managed.

Sorry to be so blunt.

right, will call GP in the morning, hopefully won't be this anyway but I'm a bit worrieid now. Thanks everyone

Whilst you probably do need to see your gp, if you are not itching it is extremely unlikely that you have oc. Esp if you have had a normal pregnancy before. Please try not to worry. Let us know what happens.

thank you thank you, have been waiting for someone to come on and post something like that
of course as soon as you're wondering if you itch...you itch!
It's my scalp though - think I must be confusing it with nits
Yes, have had one uneventful pregnancy and been fine so far in this one
It was patient.co.uk that reassured me, just looked on nhs uk which seems to agree with you lot
am eventually going to ask them why their advice seems to contradict everyone else
but first going to call GP in the morning!

How many weeks are you?

I never had chance to hear what my results were - baby had to be born before they were processed.

Just checked and you are 27 weeks.

You will phone tmw, won't you, if not today? And keep an eye on the movements.

I was 27 weeks yesterday so hoping that's not the case. How many weeks were you?

Phoning in the morning
Will get an appointment for the afternoon
thanks

38

I had very similar symptoms which turned out to be severe pre-eclampsia, even though my bp and urine were fine at the time. Was down to liver damage like Reginamygina says. Definitely get your appt tomorrow - if you get pain just under your ribs at the top of your bump (epigastric pain), phone your mw or delivery suite or whoever will answer the phone immediately.

Hopefully will be nothing though - good luck

well i have general soreness there when I bend over but not really pain.

OK I am now feeling angry and like a fool. I called the doctors the minute they opened, and as usual for a Monday morning, nothing. So I called the PAU where I described my symptoms, to be met with a "Well I'm not sure why you want to be checked out". SO I mentioned OC and that I was under the impression there was a link between it and my symptoms.
"No"
"Really"
"Yes"
After that she did get a bit more reassuring, but I am really starting to worry that I am now at the mercy of one person's competence. I am also obsessing about movements - is it worth keeping a kick chart, and if so, what do I need to watch out for? Do I count kick-kick as one kick or two?

Right, have sent a strongly worded email to patient.co.uk, and am going to look up kick charts.
Wish the next 10 weeks were over!

SPB, have you got a midwife you can speak to directly? I know when I was pregnant that the team of midwives carried a mobile that you could call any time of the day or night if you were worried.
Hope you get yourself sorted out, how are you feeling today?

i had OC with both my pregnancies it was really severe, your symptoms dont sound anything like it but they do sound like the symtoms my newborn nephew had and he has liver disease. you nees to go to the hosp or docs asap.xxx

hope you areok

p.s

my nephews stools were white thats how they knew his liver was not functioning if its just pale and not whit prob just a bug.xxx
but def not sound anything like OC

msdevine, I've described my symptoms to the midwife and been told there's nothing to worry about. Which is sort of reassuring!
Thanks everyone

hope your nephew is OK

Hs your midwife seen you?

Hi no, was told there was nothing to come in for. And as it happens the dark urine thing has gone so it must have just been dehydration - was much darker than last time I had a bug though when I could feel myself getting dehydrated!

Hi Stealth!

Glad the dark urine thing has gone. With OC or other liver problems, the colour isn't just dark, it's orange, dark orange in fact. I didn't realise how bad it was until they ask for a sample at the hospital, and seeing it in a clear container was quite a shock! If it's still yellow, then no worries.

Now for the poopoo bit. It's not just pale, it's white. Weird old dog poo white.

Right, I just thought i'd give you the gorey details so you can really know what to look out for!

Maxbear, I had a perfectly normal 1st pregnancy, OC only affected the second one.

(now pg with 3rd, so watch this space).