Medical experts that prescribe the antifungal drug, fluconazole, during pregnancy have been cautioned because it might raise the risk of miscarriages.
Although, Fluconazole (brand name Diflucan) is used to treat vaginal yeast infections, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which issued the warning on Tuesday, has advised patients, who are pregnant or actively trying to get pregnant to talk to their health care professionals about alternative treatment options for yeast infections.
Vaginal yeast infections are caused by an organism called Candida albicans, and symptoms include vaginal itching, burning, discharge, and pain with urination.
Reacting to the study, an obstetrician and gynaecologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, Dr. Jennifer Wu, urged women who are trying to become pregnant or who are pregnant to avoid fluconazole, adding, “For these women, a topical medicine is the preferred treatment.”
Topical medicine means the drug is applied to body surfaces such as the skin or mucous membranes to treat ailments via a large range of classes including creams, foams, gels, lotions, and ointments. Fluconazole (available as a pill or suspension liquid) is the only oral drug used to treat yeast infections during pregnancy, Wu said.
The FDA said it was evaluating the results of a recent Danish study that suggested a link between fluconazole and miscarriage, along with additional data and will release final conclusions and recommendations when the review was completed.
According to a report in the newsmax.com, current labelling information on the drug suggests that a single 150 milligram (mg) dose of oral fluconazole to treat vaginal yeast infection is safe to take during pregnancy.
However, the FDA noted that in rare cases higher doses taken during pregnancy (400 mg to 800 mg a day) had been linked to abnormalities at birth. In the Danish study, most of the fluconazole use appeared to be one or two doses of 150 mg.
“Until FDA’s review is complete and more is understood about this study and other available data, FDA advises cautious prescribing of oral fluconazole in pregnancy.”
The agency noted that the U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention recommends only antifungal creams to treat pregnant women with vaginal yeast infections, even for longer periods than usual if the infections persist or recur.
While the Danish study showed that pregnant women treated with fluconazole had a greater risk of miscarriage than those who used an antifungal cream, it did not prove the drug causes miscarriages, the authors noted.
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