Betnesol During Pregnancy & Infant Weight Gain Concerns: A Parent's Inquiry

Question
Dear Sir/Madram,

My wife had betnesol Injection (two times) when she was pregnant. We had a girl baby. she looked normal. She (my baby) had gain normal weight until 7.2 months, after that her weight gain had stoped compeletly. Now she is going to complete 15 months. she just gained less than 2 pounds. We went to barium swallow test, the result was normal. She is eating enough food for her age. sometimes she looks very tired, skin looks like lack of blood and anemic. Kindly let me know whether betnesol impacted my child or not.

She had a reflux issue, but we had taken care off.

Kindly let me know this..

Thanks for your help

Thanks and Regards,
VJ

Answer
Betnesol, or betamethasone, is usually given during pregnancy to help mature the baby's lungs when premature birth seems imminent.  You say she had the injection 2 times; I assume she got 2 shots approximately 24 hours apart, which is considered one course of treatment.  There are no studies linking Betnesol to later weight-gain problems in infants.  In fact, little if any long-term side effects are connected to a single Betnesol course during pregnancy.

I hope your daughter does well.  Many things can cause weight gain to slow or stall at this age, including genetics (maybe she will be a small person), metabolism, and activity level (an early walker who is very busy will gain more slowly).  If she appears sickly, then that is another matter, and I hope you and your doctors are able to figure it out.  Good luck!