Women and pregnancy

Women with HAE can have children, as HAE does not impair fertility. If you want to get pregnant or are pregnant, your doctor will follow you closely to discuss the appropriate management of your HAE with you.

HAE TREATMENT

During pregnancy and breastfeeding, treatment with anabolic androgens (or steroids) or tranexamic acid is not recommended. Your HAE treating physician can help you develop a treatment plan specific to your individual needs before, during, and after giving birth and while breastfeeding.

HAE ATTACKS

Women with HAE report that each pregnancy can be different. In some instances, women may experience more frequent and/or severe HAE attacks, while in other cases, women may find they experience few or no HAE attacks while pregnant.

DELIVERY

Most women with HAE experience a healthy delivery of their baby, just like those within the general population. HAE attacks are rare at the time of delivery. There is some indication of an increase in attack frequency and severity in the post-partum period.

MY BABY

HAE is an inherited condition, and each baby born to a parent with HAE has a 50% chance of inheriting the condition. Testing for HAE is possible within the first year of life; however, some physicians recommend that you wait until a baby is at least one (1) year old before testing.

Women and HAE

In the December 2023 issue of Global Perspectives, we introduced a new, occasional feature called Did You Know? The first topic was All About Women with HAE: Puberty, Pregnancy, and Pediatrics.

>> Read the article All about Women with HAE

>> Read the booklet ‘Women with HAE’ with topics like HAE and the female body, the female child and HAE, pregnancy and family planning with HAE, and menopause and aging, including a lot of FAQs answered by expert physicians.