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Mrs. K.D. called the office to report that while going down her back porch steps, she slipped and fell, landing on the steps on her butt. She didn’t hurt her head, and had no specific area that hurt, but was generally sore everywhere. She is 10 weeks pregnant with her third baby, and had her first prenatal visit three weeks ago. I asked her to come into the office so I could check her.
I found no vaginal bleeding, and her exam was basically normal for a 10 week pregnancy. I scanned her and found a normal 10 week size fetus who with an active fetal heart beat and fetal movements.
I reassured her that the baby seemed fine and other than some bruises, it didn’t look like she had sustained any serious damage during the fall. I recommended she take Tylenol for her pain and soreness. Tylenol is a Pregnancy Category B drug and is considered safe to take during pregnancy. It is probably the best option for mild to moderate pain relief at this gestational age. Had she sustained a fracture, she would need greater pain relief than Tylenol can provide. In that case, Tylenol with codeine, or Percocet will give greater pain relief and are also safe during pregnancy.
I wasn’t surprised that the fetus was OK. During the first trimester, the uterus is very well protected within the pelvic bones and anything short of catastrophic trauma will not disrupt the pregnancy. During the second and third trimester, pregnancies are much more vulnerable to trauma, even relatively mild trauma. But at this gestational age, I wouldn’t expect the slip and fall to cause any problem for the pregnancy.
