Macrolide antibiotics are readily used for the treatment of common bacterial infections such as sexually transmitted diseases and upper and lower respiratory tract infections. Recent studies have shown that taking macrolides during pregnancies could increase the risk of major birth defects. This study aims to assess the relationship between macrolide antibiotics and the risk of birth defects.
This nationwide, register-based cohort study included a total of 1,192,439 live birth pregnancies, of which macrolides were used in 13,019 pregnancies. The primary outcome of the study was the association with an outcome of any major birth defect, along with specific subgroups of birth defects.
A total of 457 infants were born with birth defects to women who had used macrolide antibiotics during pregnancy (35.1 per 1,000 pregnancies), compared with 481 women who hadn’t taken macrolides (37.0 per 1,000 pregnancies). The findings showed that the risk of major birth defects was not significantly increased for women who had used macrolide antibiotics during pregnancy. Comparative group analysis also resulted in no significant increase in the risk of birth defects.
The research concluded that the use of macrolide antibiotics in pregnancy was not associated with a significant risk of major birth defects.
Ref: https://www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n107
