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Published on: July 17, 2017
Transfer of rofecoxib into human milk
Sharon J Gardiner1, Evan J Begg, Mei Zhang
1Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Christchurch Hospital, Private Bag 4710, Christchurch, New Zealand. sharon.gardiner@cdhb.govt.nz
Objective:
To determine the milk-to-plasma (M/P) concentration ratio of rofecoxib in lactating mothers and estimate likely infant exposure.
Methods:
Rofecoxib 25 mg was given to six lactating women at weaning. Blood and milk were sampled up to 72 h post-dose for determination of rofecoxib concentrations. M/P ratios were derived from the respective area under the concentration-time curves. The infant 'dose' in milk was estimated and expressed as a percentage of the maternal dose, corrected for weight.
Results:
The median (range) M/P ratio and infant 'dose' were 0.25 (0.16-0.32) and 2.1% (1.8-3.2%), respectively.
Conclusions:
The use of rofecoxib during breastfeeding is unlikely to pose harm to the suckling infant on the basis of low transfer into human milk.
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