MEDICAL UPDATE: AZT Use In HIV+ Pregnant Women

MEDICAL UPDATE: AZT Use In HIV+ Pregnant Women

Being Alive Newsletter, Being Alive/Los Angeles - June 1992
Mark Katz MD and reported by Jim Stoecker

The New England Journal of Medicine recently included a survey of forty-three pregnant women at seventeen hospitals. These women, whose CD4 ranged from 8 to 880, had all taken AZT during their pregnancies and appeared to tolerate the drug well.

Researchers found that all forty-five babies born to these women (two women had twins) were born alive. There was no increased risk of anemia or bone marrow toxicities for the infants. Researchers also found no increased risk of intrauterine growth retardation or premature birth. Even the twelve infants who were exposed to AZT during the first trimester had no malformations at birth.

What we can conclude for the time being is that AZT may not be harmful to pregnant women. If AZT is the antiviral therapy called for, a pregnant woman, it appears, can go ahead with this course of treatment. The NEJM study, however, was based on limited surveillance data; we need more research on antivirals and pregnancy.
920601
BA920602

AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Roxane Laboratories, the National Library of Medicine, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 1992. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

Copyright © 1992 - Beings Alive. Permission granted for noncommercial reproduction, provided that our address and phone number are included if more than short quotations are used. Subscription lists are kept confidential. Being Alive, 621 N. San Vicente Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069, Tel - 310.289.2551; FAX - 310.289.9866; Email: BeiAlive@aol.com http://www.beingalivela.org/

This information is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
©1992. AEGIS.