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Are either Lamictal or abilify considered ok to take during pregnancy?
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Mel1108:
Lamotrigine has been used extensively in pregnant women and it seems to be relatively safe to use.
Abilify is somewhat questionable. See below. Many of the Second Generation antipsychotic have been used in pregnant women. Olanzapine seems to be one of the safer, but it may cause a lot more weight gain.
Tom Hale Ph.D.
In a case report of a mother who took aripiprazole 18 mg daily in pregnancy (starting at 22 weeks gestation) and while breastfeeding, the infant did not breathe spontaneously and had poor muscle tone right after birth.[2] Short-term resuscitation (1 minute) was required. The authors reported two potential possibilities; placental insufficiency due to spinal anesthesia during cesarean delivery or a possible adverse effect of aripiprazole exposure in pregnancy. However, the duration of the infant’s poor condition was short, therefore, the authors felt the adverse effects were most likely due to the spinal anesthesia. In addition, umbilical vein blood was drawn at delivery and the concentration was 96.4 µg/L, this demonstrated that aripiprazole crosses the placenta.
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OLANZAPINE
Olanzapine does not appear to increase the risk of congenital anomalies but does increase the risk of maternal gestational diabetes and pulmonary embolus. Neonates are at increased risk for being large for gestational age. Women who are taking olanzapine and do not want to become pregnant should be counseled on the use of adequate birth control methods due to the normalizing effect of the drug on prolactin.[14]
Olanzapine is an antipsychotic medication used in the treatment of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.[1] There were no randomized, well-controlled studies located on the use of olanzapine. There were a few small studies located with olanzapine use during pregnancy, and there did not appear to be an increase in the risk of congenital anomalies.[2-9] There does appear to be an increase in maternal weight gain, and the associated increase in gestational diabetes and thromboembolitic events.[6, 10-12] Newham et al reported neonates exposed to olanzapine in utero were commonly large for gestational age.[13] In summary, olanzapine does not appear to increase the risk of congenital anomalies but does increase the risk of maternal gestational diabetes and pulmonary embolus. Neonates are at increased risk for being large for gestational age. Women who are taking olanzapine and do not want to become pregnant should be counseled on the use of adequate birth control methods due to the normalizing effect of the drug on prolactin.[14] In a recent study of 30 women consuming olanzapine during gestation, non congenital birth defects were found.[15] A withdrawal syndrome was seen in 3 of 30 infants studied.
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