I forget which drug it’s for, probably something for arthritis or osteoporosis, but there’s a current drug commercial with the popular warning " Not to be taken by women who are pregnant, nursing, or may become pregnant."
What exactly do they mean by that last part? That no female between puberty and menopause should take it?? Or does “may” indicate a likelihood of pregnancy, like having unprotected sex? Do they only give that warning for drugs that cause birth defects, or are there other reasons, like causing complications during pregnancy?
I asked my mom about itsometime ago. She’s an RN so I thought she might know. She said they say it like that to include women having unprotected sex, those who aren’t careful with their BC pills, as well as those who may be trying to conceive.
I believe it typically means that the drug in question has the potential to do nasty things to embryos in the early stages of pregnancy (i.e., before someone would necessarily realize that she was pregnant)
Drug companies have a hard time testing their drugs on pregnant women, for all the obvious reasons. They use other test animals (rabbits, weasels, monkeys, etc) and hope for the best. But they still don’t want to have lawsuits coming out of their ears, so they try to word the ads with a warning.
No especially relevant, but when I worked for a pharmaceutical company, every woman in our test programs had to promise to use two forms of birth control. When one woman in one study group failed to do so and got pregnant while on a drug, you could almost hear the entire senior staff having simultaneous heart attacks.
As gorsnak and Dr Lao pointed out, there are several useful drugs out there that have horrendous impact on developing babies.
Thalidomide and Accutane come to mind immediately, but others such as tetracycline can leave a serious (but less devastating) impact.
Basically, if there is a chance you could get pregnant, you should probably not use these drugs. If you are using BC responsibly or are not involved in a sexual relationship, you can just consider the side effects that apply to you.
Some of the MD dopers will be around soon with a list of the really bad stuff.
When I was on Accutane the drug package had simple drawings of mis-shapen infant heads. They didn’t want males who might be in the process of making babies taking it either.
As far as drugs in pregnancy go, my formulary has a 14 page appendix, with about 50 drugs per page, that are to be avoided in pregnancy or used only if potential benefit outweighs risk. There is also a note that “no drug is safe beyond doubt in early pregnancy”.
Some drugs are definitely teratogenic, and it would be irresponsible for women taking those drugs not to be advised (or in the case of Accutane/Roaccutane required) to use a form of birth control.
Thalidomide is still used to treat leprosy in South America, and the packaging of the tablets has a picture of a woman with a big X through it. The worry in those countries was that people would share drugs just intended for one person with their freinds and family, so although they only prescribe the drug to men, and women of non-reproductive age, there are still issues about potential birth defects.
Take home message: any woman on regular medication should discuss very carefully with her doctor before trying to conceive. Some medications may need to be discontinued or have their dosages changed. Some women will have to keep taking the medications they are on, and for them determining whether they are prepared to accept the risks, and what their options are with regards to detection of abnormalities and possible termination may be more appropriate.
Likewise, any accidental pregnancies that occur while the woman is taking medication should be followed up with that fact in mind.
Not just South America. Thalidomide is still in use for people with Hansen’s Disease in the US, and for some AIDS patients with certain skin conditions.
When I was pregnant I was employed in a hospital pharmacy. I was not to touch certain drugs (simvastatin, atorvastatin spring to mind, as well as a drug used to induce abortion), as they could potentially harm the fetus. I just left those for co-workers to deal with - we had one woman who was in her 50s and was in menopause, so they were safe for her to handle.
Completely irrelevant, but it’s the grammar mistake that really bugs me when I hear this. I picture diagramming the sentence for the benefit of whoever writes this ungrammatical mess and all the other unparallel lists I hear. ::head explodes::
[/irrelevant pet peeve]