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How long should one wait after stopping a drug before starting a pregnancy?

Some key principles to help answer this question without relying solely on the summary of product characteristics.

The summaries of product characteristics (SPCs) for some drugs recommend the use of contraception after treatment cessation. The recommended duration of contraception differs greatly and can be as long as two years. Why and how is this determined?

A text published in the September 2022 issue of Prescrire International, in conjunction with Prescrire's review of the harms associated with mycophenolic acid during pregnancy, examines the factors involved, including:

  • Time for the drug to be cleared from the body before conception
  • Time for any maternal deficiencies to be corrected
  • Time to clear any damage to gametes by genotoxic drugs
  • The recommendations in SPCs are inconsistent or lacking.

©Prescrire 1 September 2022

Source: "How long should one wait after stopping a drug before starting a pregnancy?" Prescrire International 2022; 31 (240): 211-212. Subscribers only.

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See also:
"Mycophenolic acid
and pregnancy:
genotoxicity, malformations,
spontaneous abortions"
(September 2022)
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