Ciprofloxacin exposure not tied to miscarriage, major malformations: Study

Denmark: A recent study in the journal BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology showed no link between maternal exposure to ciprofloxacin within the first 22 weeks of pregnancy and the risk of miscarriage and major malformations. 

Ciprofloxacin is the antibiotic of choice for initial prophylactic therapy among asymptomatic pregnant women exposed to Bacillus anthracis, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). While, the FDA further states that, there have been no controlled studies of ciprofloxacin use in pregnant women to show safety. However, an expert review of published data on experiences with ciprofloxacin use during pregnancy by TERIS showed that t therapeutic doses during pregnancy are not likely to pose a substantial teratogenic risk, but there is insufficient data to state that there is no risk. 

Against the above background, Mia Noergaard, Copenhagen University Hospital Bispebjerg and Frederiksberg, Copenhagen, Denmark, and colleagues aimed to examine the association between maternal exposure to ciprofloxacin and the risk of miscarriage and major malformations in a nationwide register-based cohort study.

For this purpose, the researchers obtained data from the Medical Birth Registry, the National Hospital Registry, the Danish National Prescription Registry, and Statistics Denmark between 1997-2016. It included all registered pregnancies that ended in an elective termination, miscarriage, stillbirth, or live birth. Exposure was defined as redeeming one or more prescriptions of ciprofloxacin.