Betamethasone Shots

sjirishgirl · December 2013

I had two rounds of these shots this weekend due preterm labor.
Has anyone else had these? What was your experience with them?
Pro/cons or side effects.

pizzo84 · December 2013

I had my second shot 1 week before my girls were born.

Pros:
They took away any unpleasant pregnancy symptom I was experiencing (just a pleasant side effect of steroids)... for about 4 days no more itching, no mucousy weirdness... it was wonderful!!

Cons:
My babies still had terribly underdeveloped lungs at birth... one required 48 hrs on a ventilator, and the other required 8 days... which is a bit unusual for girls born at 32 weeks.... but I personally had no adverse effects to the shots.

Good luck!

TheDairyQueenx3 · December 2013

Saved us a lot of NICU time. Our boys (34 weekers) were only on CPAP for 24 hours then room air and had no issues with oxygen levels. Only con was those shots hurt like hell but anything to make sure they were healthy! I had 2 shots at 26 weeks 6 days and again at 27 weeks 0 days then a third dose at 32 weeks when again I started PTL. No negative side effects for myself just helped my boys after birth.

LegallyBlonde217 · December 2013

I delivered at 33w4d and neither baby needed any breathing assistance. They were breathing room air from minute 1. I can't say for sure if it was from the shots or not, but I'm sure they didn't hurt. The only side effect I had was a hard time sleeping the days that I got the shots. Steroids always make me hyper, though.

carrotcake06 · December 2013

I had my boys at 34w and neither needed any type of breathing assistance, which I credited to getting the shots.

No cons whatsoever. Other than a crappy weekend in the hospital.

Momof8inSC · December 2013

I had them with two singleton pgcies. Worked out great. Hips sore but I was so thankful for them.

Topanga · December 2013

I had the shots too. No side effects that I noticed. Mine were born at 36 weeks 5 days and needed no Nicu time.

spin25 · December 2013

I didn't notice any side effects. I had the shots at 30w2d and 30w3d, then delivered at 30w4d. DD was on room air from the start, and I can't imagine that would have been the case w/o the steroid. DS has needed more help breathing but is progressing nicely.

Mrs. Alice · December 2013

I had them at 24w and 28w, delivered at 28w just hours after the 2nd shot. They were fairly typical for gestational age needing vents for 2-3 weeks, then less invasive cpap for a short time and oxygen for several more weeks. One of my boys developed chronic lung disease from the damage but fortunately he hasn't had any long term effects from that. I didn't notice any major side effects. Maybe insomnia but that could have also been from a number of things. If your babies are born premature the steroids also act as a neuro protector. Niether of mine had a brain bleed which can commonly happen in very premature babies. If you are at high risk of delivery before 34 weeks it's always good to have them just in case. However the effectiveness is really only active for up to a week. After that a rescue round can be given if you are still at risk for delivering early.

LucyRicardo3 · December 2013

I was given the shots with the twins around 31+weeks after contractions picked up and I went on Mag drip (in L&D) to get it stopped when nothing else would.
Ultimately, my girls were born at 34w5d via c/s. So just outside of the recommended effectiveness time frame for the steriods.. Miss A had severe respiratory distress at birth and MIss B's respiratory issues started about 15 minutes or so after delivery. The neonatal staff said their issues were typical of babies born at that gestational age.

I seem to recall my MFM explaining the steroids to me as, the steroids act like an artificial surfactant for the lungs, so that it makes it somewhat easier for the baby to breathe while the lungs continue to mature and as @Mrs.Alice stated, assists in reduction of brain bleeds, etc.. It's a temporary thing to give them a boost, but it does not actually speed up their lung development.

With my oldest child, I'd been given the shots a week prior to his birth at 35 weeks due to PTL issues. He was put on oxygen assistance ("cake dome") for about an hour after birth just for precaution, but he was able to room with me after than and go home just as a full term baby would have. So I feel that better timing of the injection had a big deal with his good health. This was in 2000.

It can be a crap shoot for timing, as I recall being told I had to wait 2-3 weeks between injection rounds, but I'm not aware of any truly harmful side effects from receiving the shots for either mom or baby(ies).