Rheumatoid Arthritis Drugs & Pregnancy
Here’s a topic I’ve been able to find precious little about. So, I've decided to do some research since we do want to have kids someday, and it doesn't look like my RA is going anywhere. While research shows that a lot of women experience a decrease of symptoms during pregnancy, there’s no guarantee that will happen and no guarantee that even symptoms at a decreased level will be tolerable. My preference would be to not be on any drugs while I’m pregnant, and that will be my first attempted course of action. But I need a contingency plan. If I can’t be completely off medications, I wanted to know the risks involved with various medications before making a decision on what my contingency treatment plan would entail. I’ve had numerous discussions with my rheumatologist and my primary care physician (and we are all in agreement on what my plan will be at this point), but I wanted to pull together a list so that I could organize my thoughts and make sure I examined all (or at least many) of the options and understood the risks.
RA Drugs
|
|||
Brand Name
|
Generic Name
|
Administration
|
Pregnancy Category
|
Biologics
|
|||
Etanercept
|
Injection
|
||
Adalimumab
|
Injection
|
||
Golimumab
|
Injection
|
||
Rituximab
|
Infusion
|
||
Infliximab
|
Infusion
|
||
Tocilizumab
|
Infusion
|
||
Atabacept
|
Injection/Infusion
|
||
Certolizumab
|
Injection
|
||
Anakinra
|
Injection
|
||
Synthetic
DMARDs
|
|||
Hydroxychloroquine
|
Oral
|
||
Leflunomide
|
Oral
|
||
Methotrexate
|
Oral
|
||
Sulfasalazine
|
Oral
|
||
NSAIDs
|
|||
Naprosyn®,
Aleve®
|
Naproxen
|
Oral
|
|
Celecoxib
|
Oral
|
||
Mobic®
|
Meloxicam
|
Oral
|
|
Corticosteroids
|
|||
Prednisone
|
Oral
|
Obviously, talk to your doctor if you are on any medications and plan to become pregnant, and come up with a treatment plan that both you and your doctor are on board with. My rheumatologist has been great to work with in this regard, and I'm very thankful for that!
EmbryoTox.de -- Many thanks to Dr. Kirsch for showing me this great resource -- search a drug and it pulls up all sorts of information regarding the drug and pregnancy/lactation. The site is in German, so if you're like me and don't speak German you'll just need to translate it :)
Choosing Medications for Adults with RA -- Good list of available treatment options for RA.
ABOUTME
Hi there! My name is Dana and I live in West Michigan with my husband, Tom and our dog Copernicus. I created this space as a place to share the things I learn along this journey I call life. I work in marketing and I'm a sort of Jane of All Trades, interested in all things nature, gardening, cooking, exploring and learning new things. This blog is a conglomeration of my interests, hobbies, life and life lessons. Thanks for stopping by!