Pregnant Women Warned About ACE Inhibitor
1. Some of the most commonly used medicines for high blood pressure are drugs called ACE inhibitors. Doctors have given these drugs to patients for twenty-five years. A government study in the United States found that the use almost doubled between 1995 and 2000.
2. Doctors have known for years that women should not take ACE inhibitors during the last six months of pregnancy. The medicine can injure the baby. ACE inhibitors, though, have been considered safe when taken during the first three months. But a New study has found that women who take these drugs early in their pregnancy still increase the risk of birth disorders2. The study shows that, compared to others, their babies were almost three times as likely to be born with major problems.3 These included problems with the formation of the brain and nervous system and holes in the heart.
3. The researchers say they found no increased risk in women who took other blood pressure medicines during the first three months. Researchers at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee and Boston University did the study. The New England Journal of Medicine4 published the results. The researchers studied the records of almost thirty thousand births between 1985 and 2000. Two hundred nine babies were born to women who took ACE inhibitors during the first three months of their pregnancies. Eighteen of the babies, or almost nine percent, had major disorders.
4. ACE inhibitors are often given to patients with diabetes. But diabetes during pregnancy can result in birth defects. So the study did not include any women known to be diabetic5. ACE inhibitors suppress a protein called angiotensin-converting enzyme, or ACE. This enzyme produces a chemical in the body that makes blood passages narrow. The drugs increase the flow of blood so pressure is reduced.
5. New drugs are tested on pregnant animals to see if they might cause birth defects in humans. But experts say these tests are not always dependable. The United States Food and Drug Administration6 helped pay for the study. The F. D. A. says women who might become pregnant should talk with their doctor about other ways to treat high blood pressure.
詞匯：
pregnant adj.懷孕的
warn vt.警告
inhibitor n. 抑制劑
pregnancy n.懷孕
diabetes ( = diabetes mellitus) n.糖尿病
diabetic adj.糖尿病的;n.糖尿病患者
suppress vt.抑制
protein n.蛋白(質(zhì))
dependable adj.可靠的
注釋：
1.ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme):血管緊張肽轉(zhuǎn)化酶
2.birth disorders:先天性疾病
3.The study shows that, compared to others, their babies were almost three times as likely to be born with major problems.這項(xiàng)研究表明,與其他嬰兒相比,這些嬰兒在出生時(shí)患大病的可能性幾乎是他們的三倍。problem在醫(yī)學(xué)文獻(xiàn)中常常用來(lái)指疾病。
4.New England Journal Medicine:《新英格蘭醫(yī)學(xué)雜志》。New England是美國(guó)東北六州(Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island 和Connecticut)的總稱。
5.birth defect ( = congenital defect):先天性缺陷,先天性缺損
6.United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA):美國(guó)食品與藥品管理局
練習(xí)：
1.Paragraph 2 ____________
2.Paragraph 3 ____________
3.Paragraph 4 ____________
4.Paragraph 5 ____________
A Effects of ACE and ACE Inhibitors
B Wide Use of ACE Inhibitors
C How to Deal with High Blood Pressure in Pregnant Women
D Damage to Pregnant Women’s Future Babies
E Suggestions on Stopping the Use of ACE Inhibitors
F F. Relative Safe for Women During the First Three Months of Pregnancies
5.FDA. suggests that pregnant women with high blood pressure should consult ____________.
6.ACE inhibitors are not recommended ____________.
7.Evidence showed only a small percentage of babies suffered major disorders ____________.
8.ACE is a risk factor to our body ____________.
A that may cause our blood vessels to become more and more narrow
B for pregnant women to take during their last six months of pregnancies
C that their likelihood to suffer major problems is two times higher than other babies
D with their doctors about how to treat their problems
E because diabetes during pregnancy may sometimes lead to birth defects
F F. though their mothers took ACE inhibitors during their first three months of pregnancies
答案與題解：
1.D第二段說(shuō)的是孕婦在孕期最后六個(gè)月服用ACE抑制劑會(huì)給未來(lái)嬰兒帶來(lái)傷害,嬰兒患大病的可能性幾乎是其他嬰兒的三倍,包括大腦和神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)發(fā)育缺陷及心臟出現(xiàn)空洞等。
2.F第三段說(shuō)患高血壓的孕婦在孕期頭三個(gè)月服用其他降壓藥,她們的危險(xiǎn)性并沒(méi)有增加;即使服用ACE抑制劑,其嬰兒也只有大約9%患大病。故妊娠期前三個(gè)月相對(duì)安全。
3.A第四段說(shuō)，ACE抑制劑可以抑制一種叫ACE的蛋白質(zhì)，ACE可以使血管變窄,而ACE 抑制劑則可增加血流使血壓下降。
4.C第五段說(shuō),雖然目前正在妊娠動(dòng)物上試驗(yàn)新藥,但其結(jié)果也不一定可靠,因此患高血壓的妊娠婦女還是要去咨詢醫(yī)生。
5.D本題答案在文章的最后一句。talk with與consult with的意思相同,都是“咨詢、商量”的意思。
6.B第二段第一句說(shuō),多年來(lái)醫(yī)生已經(jīng)知道,婦女在妊娠的后六個(gè)月不應(yīng)該服用ACE抑制劑。
7.F第三段后半部說(shuō),研究人員研究了大約30,000個(gè)嬰兒,其中209個(gè)嬰兒的母親在妊娠的前三個(gè)月服用過(guò)ACE抑制劑,但只有18個(gè)嬰兒患有大病,大約占9%。
8.A本題答案在第四段倒數(shù)第二句,該句說(shuō),這種酶(即ACE)可使血管變窄。
譯文：孕婦要警惕ACE抑制劑
ACE(血管緊張肽轉(zhuǎn)化酶)抑制劑是指那些通常用于治療高血壓的藥物。醫(yī)生給病人用這種藥已經(jīng)25年了。美國(guó)政府的一份研究報(bào)告顯示，在1995年到2000年之間，這種藥的用量翻了一番。
醫(yī)生們一直都知道，雖然服用ACE(血管緊張肽轉(zhuǎn)化酶)抑制劑在妊娠期的前3個(gè)月是安全地，但是在妊娠期的后6個(gè)月不應(yīng)該服用ACE(血管緊張肽轉(zhuǎn)化酶)抑制劑。因?yàn)檫@種藥物會(huì)損傷嬰兒�？墒怯幸豁�(xiàng)新的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，孕婦在妊娠初期服用這種藥物，同樣會(huì)增加新生兒患先天性疾病的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。這項(xiàng)研究表明，與其他嬰兒相比，這些嬰兒在出生時(shí)患大病得可能性幾乎是其他嬰兒的3倍。這些病包括大腦和神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)發(fā)育缺陷及心臟出現(xiàn)空洞。
研究人員表示，患高血壓的孕婦在妊娠期的前3個(gè)月服用其他降壓藥，她們的危險(xiǎn)性并沒(méi)有增加。來(lái)自田納西州的范德比特大學(xué)和波士頓大學(xué)的研究人員對(duì)此進(jìn)行了研究�！缎掠⒏裉m醫(yī)學(xué)雜志》發(fā)表了此項(xiàng)研究成果。研究人員研究了從1985年至2000年出生的約3萬(wàn)新生兒的記錄。其中有209個(gè)新生兒的母親曾經(jīng)在妊娠期的前3個(gè)月里服用過(guò)ACE(血管緊張肽轉(zhuǎn)化酶)抑制劑。這些新生兒中有18個(gè)，大約占研究總數(shù)的9%，患有嚴(yán)重地先天性疾病。
ACE(血管緊張肽轉(zhuǎn)化酶)抑制劑通常用于患有糖尿病的患者。但孕婦患糖尿病可能會(huì)導(dǎo)致新生兒的先天性缺陷。因此這項(xiàng)研究的研究對(duì)象不包括任何患有糖尿病的孕婦。ACE抑制劑的作用是抑制血管緊張肽轉(zhuǎn)化酶，又稱ACE。這種酶在人體內(nèi)制造一種使血管變窄、血壓上升的化學(xué)物質(zhì)。ACE抑制劑則能增加血液的流動(dòng)，因此血壓造成降低。
目前正通過(guò)在妊娠動(dòng)物上試驗(yàn)新藥，來(lái)推斷它會(huì)不會(huì)造成人類新生兒的先天缺陷。但專家表示，這些測(cè)試結(jié)果也不一定可靠。美國(guó)食品與藥品管理局資助了這項(xiàng)研究。食品與藥品管理局指出：患高血壓的婦女在懷孕前應(yīng)該向醫(yī)生咨詢治療高血壓的其他方法。
