Is it necessary to go to a high risk or special OB/GYN ? do you ?

hello everyone.. I will be finishing grad school in Aug 08 and my hubby and I would like to start a family soon after.  My OB/GYN recently moved out of town so I have to get a new one. I am just thinking in advance, what experience have you had with your OB/GYN and Crohns? Do we or should we see a specialist when pregnant b/c of our Crohns? Can a reg OB/GYN handle the q's & concerns that could arise with Prednisone and flares and etc. during the course of our pregnancies..? Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks.

I had my kids when I was 37 and 39 and have had Crohn's since I was 16/17. I went to a regular OB/GYN and also involved my GI. With my first pregnancy everything went fine and I felt great until after I delivered. With my second, I had to stay on a low dose of prednisone throughout and had 5 or 6 ultrasounds to monitor my daughter's growth. That was it. Both kids are reasonably healthy, usual kids stuff.

Good luck to you on starting a family.

I usually post on the UC board but lurk on this board periodically, too. I am currently pregnant and see a high-risk OB. Both my GI and my regular GYN felt it was important that I see a high-risk OB due to the medications I am taking while pregnant, risk of flare-up, etc. I did flare during my first trimester and had to go on a short taper of Prednisone. My OB was great because he has dealt with this many times before.

I have found that there are benefits to being high-risk. I've had 9 ultrasounds and a gazillion prenatal tests!

I had a really good OB/GYN when I was pregnant with my son. But my problems with Crohn's really kicked in after his birth (like six months after). My GYN now, said if I ever got pregnant she would refer me to a high risk doc. I have high blood pressure, Crohn's, and PCOS. So I'm a mess! I won't get pregnant again though. I didn't like taking Tylenol when I was pregnant with my son, I would be a wreck knowing I have to take all these medications now days.

I saw and see my regular OB, but he works VERY closely on my case with my GI. He doesn't know enough about Crohn's for him to not even consider talking to my GI about my pregnancies. (He learned his lesson before I got pg by telling me I had to stop Imuran before trying to conceive - I crashed and ended up in the hospital with a massive flare. Now he defers to my GI on all things CD related.) :)