Ultram/tramadol pregancy. Worried of birth defects and developmental problems. PLEASE HELP

I am 17 weeks into my pregnancy. All blood work has come back normal. I have been taking around 200mg or less of Ultram throug out my pregnancy. I am nervous that my child will have developmental , physical or mental problems as a result of this. Not sure what to do. If you took this or know someone who did can you please offer insight. I would greatly appreciate it. I feel so awful and so guilty. I stopped for 3 weeks durring my 1st trimester though. Scared my child will be slow or developmentally delayed or something will be wrong. please help. No one ever seems to answer my posts.

[Yao Sun, MD, PhD]

Generally speaking, the risks of structural damage to the fetus from taking Ultram is low, although it is higher than the general population of mothers who do not take this particular drug.  Like all pain medications, however, the risk vs. benefit decision of whether to continue taking Ultram is an individual one that can only be made by you and your physician.  There is no need to feel guilty if you have had an open discussion with your physician about using Ultram and have made a joint decision that it is the best treatment option during this pregnancy.

[AnnaNatalia]

A related discussion, Ultram and Pregnancy was started.