Pregnancy, breast feeding and drugs

Pregnancy Warning

Fluoroquinolones caused fetal harm in animal studies, including decreased body weights and malformed bones as well as an increased risk of death. Because of the potential for serious adverse effects to the fetus, these drugs should not be used by pregnant women. (Ciprofloxacin and noroxin are quinolones)

So many drugs have the potential to harm the forming baby within. ALL WOMEN who are and those who could get pregnant should ask if its okay to conceive and be pregnant while taking any drug? ASSUME IT ISN'T TILL YOU HAVE CHECKED. Do not assume your doctor remembers you are pregnant when s/he wrote out the script - s/he may have been distracted.

Here's a site to check on drug use during pregnancy and breast feeding. It says cipro is safe

Ciprofloxacin (Cipro)
Antiinfective; Quinolone
CATEGORY:C
Crosses placenta. 1st trimester exposure in 105 fetuses resulted in no increased rate of major or minor anomalies. Achievement of developmental milestones and musculo-skeletal system development were normal. However, the authors of the study cautioned that longer follow-up and magnetic resonance imaging of the joints may be warranted to exclude subtle cartilage and bone damage.[1]
BREAST FEEDING: Compatible [G3].
NEONATAL SIDE EFFECTS: None reported.

Who do you believe? Is 105 exposures a big enough study - I doubt it. Remember thalidomide - this didn't effect every 150th foetus. If it had of done, my goodness that would have been a major major disaster. Maybe the site above is funded by you know who?

It's such a shame that one has to be so goddam cynical.

Here's another site.

The more one looks into things the less certainty there seems to be. If you want certainty don't look into things. As they say statistics are like a bikini - they show a lot but hide the vital parts.

Or they are like a lamp post in a street to an alcoholic - used for support rather than illumination.