Eldepryl and Pregnancy

Animal studies involving Eldepryl (selegiline hydrochloride) and pregnancy have shown that the medication may cause potential problems to a fetus. When given to pregnant animals, Eldepryl decreased offspring survival and offspring body weight, and increased the risk of miscarriages and stillbirths. However, it is unclear if the same problems would occur in pregnant women. If you are taking Eldepryl and pregnancy occurs, notify your healthcare provider.

 

Eldepryl During Pregnancy: An Overview

Eldepryl® (selegiline hydrochloride) is a prescription medication approved for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. Eldepryl may not be safe for use during pregnancy, although the full risks to humans are not currently known. All of the information available about the risks of using Eldepryl during pregnancy comes from animal studies.
 

Eldepryl and Pregnancy Category C

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) uses a category system to classify the possible risks to a fetus when a specific medicine is taken during pregnancy. Pregnancy Category C is given to medicines that appear to cause harm to the fetus in animal studies, but have not been studied in pregnant humans. Also, medicines that have not been studied in any pregnant women or animals are automatically given a pregnancy Category C rating.
 
When given to pregnant animals, Eldepryl decreased offspring survival and offspring body weight. It also increased the risk of miscarriages and stillbirths. It should be noted that very high doses of Eldepryl were used in these animal studies. Eldepryl has not been studied in pregnant women.
 
It is important to keep in mind that animals do not always respond to medicines in the same way that humans do. Therefore, a pregnancy Category C medicine may still be given to a pregnant woman if her healthcare provider believes that the benefits to the woman outweigh any possible risks to the unborn child. There are a few reports of women who took selegiline (the active ingredient in Eldepryl) during pregnancy without any problems, but there is not enough information available to know if Eldepryl is safe for human use during pregnancy.
 
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;