Exposure to organic solvents - Does it adversely affect pregnancy?

QUESTION One of my patients is a laboratory technician who routinely handle s organic solvents. She has just learned that she is pregnant, and she depe nds very much on this job because her husband is unemployed. What is the ri sk to her unborn baby? ANSWER Available epidemiologic data indicate your patient's fetus might be at increased risk for malformations. We recommend that she minimize her occ upational exposure to organic solvents by routinely using ventilation syste ms and protective equipment. This is most important during the first trimes ter of pregnancy.