1. Use of drugs known to cause fetal harm among women delivering infants in Haiti.
- Author
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Jules A, Kaltenbach LA, Arbogast PG, Caples TL, Po'e EK, and Cooper WO
- Subjects
- Abortifacient Agents, Nonsteroidal, Adult, Case-Control Studies, Cross-Sectional Studies, Drug Utilization, Female, Haiti, Humans, Infant, Newborn, Misoprostol, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Outcome, Regression Analysis, Tetracyclines, Drug Therapy, Self Medication, Teratogens
- Abstract
Objective: To estimate the prevalence of use of fetal-harm drugs among women who received postpartum care in hospitals in Haiti and to identify groups of women at higher risk for potentially harmful medication exposures., Methods: Women who received postpartum care in 2 large hospitals in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, from August 18 to December 1, 2008, were surveyed in Creole about their use of medications in pregnancy, including fetal-harm drugs., Results: We surveyed 482 women who had a median age of 26 years. Approximately 75% reported using at least 1 medicine in pregnancy, with the most common being amoxicillin (n = 127), acetaminophen (n = 109), metronidazole (n = 79), and misoprostol (n = 38). More than 13% used fetal-harm drugs, including misoprostol and tetracycline. Unmarried women (adjusted relative risk [RR] 2.2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.0-4.7) and separated women (adjusted RR 4.6; CI, 1.8-11.9) were more likely than married women to report use of fetal-harm drugs. In addition, women with 4 or more children were more likely to report use of medications known to cause fetal harm (adjusted RR 4.3; CI, 1.9-9.9)., Conclusion: Women who delivered infants in Haiti commonly report use of fetal-harm drugs. The public health implications of these findings are broad and relate to complex issues such as pregnancy planning and regulation of medications to prevent potentially harmful exposures., (Copyright © 2010 Academic Pediatric Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2010
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