FERCEFOL (Iron + Folic Acid + Vitamin C)
1. Role of FERCEFOL
Since my arrival in Chad in 2006, I have always prescribed FERCEFOL because this product is :
- Well tolerated by pregnant women for its taste and cost. And, it is well packaged in aluminium foil which allows the product to be well preserved even in case of flooding.
- Few women refuse to take it.
2. Its prescription in the 1st trimester contributes to good embryogenesis
Cases of intrauterine pregnancies declared as terminated pregnancies or heart eggs have developed normally to term with normal deliveries thanks to regular use of FERCEFOL.
FERCEFOL should be prescribed in the 1st trimester, 1 tablet twice a day, for 15 days – until the appearance of cardiac activity at 7 weeks of amenorrhea in cases of suspected clear eggs. For clear eggs, the ultrasound must be repeated after a 15-day appointment to confirm whether it is really a clear egg.
The same is true for pregnancies that have been declared terminated on the basis of an apparently atonic gestational sac and sometimes without an embryo. FERCEFOL should be prescribed at the rate of 1 tablet twice a day, for 15 days – to be repeated as long as there is no bleeding.
3. In antenatal care
We prescribe it from the 2nd trimester: 1 tablet / day – until delivery.
I have noticed three things at delivery:
- Premature rupture of the membranes is rare;
- The delivery is easy;
- Less bleeding after delivery compared to women who were not put on FERCEFOL.
N.B. This is the experience of the BETHESDA Clinic which, as soon as the pregnancy is confirmed, puts the woman declared pregnant on FERCEFOL at the rate of 1 tablet twice a day – for 15 days – renewable until the appearance of the fetal heartbeat and at the rate of 1 tablet a day – for 30 days and this until the delivery.
