Lately I've seen a lot of television spots for prescription medications...for products that treat diabetes, psoriasis, and of course, chronic pain. While think it's generally good for patients to know about pharmaceutical options available to them, sometimes I wonder if patients consider all the pros and cons of each medication before visiting their doctors asking for prescriptions for this or that.
Case in point--one product I see quite often is a prescription product known as Lyrica®. The generic name is pregabalin and it's indicated for chronic pain. The general mechanism of action for this drug is that it dampens the nervous impulses (including pain signals from body to brain) as they travel along the neurons in the human bodies. While this drug is categorized as a controlled substance, it's not really habit forming and does not pose risk of addiction like the opioids do. This product is widely used and does offer some relief to patients...but there are new studies that indicate this is not an ideal choice for everyone.
Up until recently, pregabalin was categorized as pregnancy category C--this means that there have been animal studies showing adverse effects on the fetus. But there are no well controlled studies in humans, so caution is advise and use should be limited to cases where benefits outweigh the risks. Then a recent study revealed that women who took the drug during the first trimester of pregnancy had a lower live birth rate. It was also discovered that women who took the drug in early pregnancy had a higher rate of major birth defects (statistically significant) than those who did not take the drug at this critical time.
The birth defects in these babies were serious-- they included chromosomal issues and structural problems. You can read more about the study, including methods and conclusions, by clicking here.
In the meantime, I think it's safe to say that if you are a woman of child bearing age...and you have a condition for which pregabalin is indicated...it might be better to look at other options, especially if they are alternatives to medication.
Sources: Practical Pain Management; MedPageToday; Drugs.com:Wikimedia
Case in point--one product I see quite often is a prescription product known as Lyrica®. The generic name is pregabalin and it's indicated for chronic pain. The general mechanism of action for this drug is that it dampens the nervous impulses (including pain signals from body to brain) as they travel along the neurons in the human bodies. While this drug is categorized as a controlled substance, it's not really habit forming and does not pose risk of addiction like the opioids do. This product is widely used and does offer some relief to patients...but there are new studies that indicate this is not an ideal choice for everyone.
Up until recently, pregabalin was categorized as pregnancy category C--this means that there have been animal studies showing adverse effects on the fetus. But there are no well controlled studies in humans, so caution is advise and use should be limited to cases where benefits outweigh the risks. Then a recent study revealed that women who took the drug during the first trimester of pregnancy had a lower live birth rate. It was also discovered that women who took the drug in early pregnancy had a higher rate of major birth defects (statistically significant) than those who did not take the drug at this critical time.
The birth defects in these babies were serious-- they included chromosomal issues and structural problems. You can read more about the study, including methods and conclusions, by clicking here.
In the meantime, I think it's safe to say that if you are a woman of child bearing age...and you have a condition for which pregabalin is indicated...it might be better to look at other options, especially if they are alternatives to medication.
Sources: Practical Pain Management; MedPageToday; Drugs.com:Wikimedia
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