Ask Our Expert - Taking Penicillin While Trying to Conceive

October 07, 2008

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Specializing in pregnancy and birth.


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Ask Dr. Greenfield Taking Penicillin While Trying to Conceive

QUESTION


Dear Dr. Greenfield, My husband and I are both taking penicillin right now. Is there any risk in conceiving during this time? — Worried in Shelton, CT

ANSWER	July 18, 2001


Dear Worried, While taking medications in early pregnancy should be avoided when possible, some medications are clearly safer than others. Penicillin has been used for decades and has not been linked to birth defects or any other complications of pregnancy, so it is usually considered safe. Without knowing why you and your husband are taking an antibiotic, I can't comment on whether the condition you are treating might have any implications for early pregnancy. Assuming you will be off the antibiotic soon and that you don't have a serious infection, there should be no real reason not to get pregnant when you want to. When possible, it is still best to avoid medications (even ones as innocuous as we believe penicillin to be) once you know you are pregnant. Good luck! Remember to take your Folate! — by Marjorie Greenfield, M.D.

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