Drug safety in pregnancy - monitoring congenital anomalies

作者：Morgan Margery^*; De Jong Van Den Berg Lolkje T W; Jordan Sue

来源：Journal of Nursing Management, 2011, 19(3): 305-310.

DOI：10.1111/j.1365-2834.2011.01250.x

• congenital anomalies
• nurses and midwives
• research methods

Aim
This paper outlines research into the causes of congenital anomalies, and introduces a pan-European study. The potential roles of nurses and midwives in this area are illustrated by a case report.
Background
Since the thalidomide disaster, use of drugs in pregnancy has been carefully monitored to prevent anything similar happening again. However, monitoring is incomplete and questions remain unanswered.
Key issues
Many medicines are essential for the health of pregnant women. However, drug use in pregnancy requires surveillance. Methods include spontaneous reporting of adverse events, cohort studies and case control studies. It is hoped that a Europe-wide study, combining data from several congenital anomaly registers, will provide a sufficiently large population to assess the impact of selected drugs on congenital anomalies. However, this work depends on the consistency of reporting by nurses and midwives.
Conclusion
Drug safety in pregnancy remains undetermined. Collaboration across Europe has the potential to provide a framework for safety evaluation.
Implications for nursing management
Prescribers should consider the possibility of pregnancy in women of child-bearing age. Careful review of maternal drug use in early pregnancy is essential. Midwives and nurses should be aware of adverse event drug reporting systems, including congenital anomaly registers.

• 出版日期2011-4