To the Editor: The Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) categorisation system for prescribing medicines in pregnancy lists doxylamine as a Category A medicine — “Drugs which have been taken by a large number of pregnant women … without any proven increase in the frequency of malformations”.1
The full article is accessible to AMA members and paid subscribers. Login to read more or purchase a subscription now.
Please note: institutional and Research4Life access to the MJA is now provided through Wiley Online Library.
- 1. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Australian categorisation system for prescribing medicines in pregnancy. https://www.tga.gov.au/australian-categorisation-system-prescribing-medicines-pregnancy (viewed Feb 2021).
- 2. Sheffield LJ, Batagol R. The creation of therapeutic orphans — or, what have we learnt from the Debendox fiasco? Med J Aust 1985; 143: 143–147.
- 3. Brent R. Bendectin and birth defects: hopefully, the final chapter. Birth Defects Res A Clin Mol Teratol 2003; 67: 79–87.
- 4. Lowe SA, Armstrong G, Beech A, et al. SOMANZ position paper on the management of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy and hyperemesis gravidarum. Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol 2020; 60: 34–43.
- 5. Ritchie HE, Saini B, Twigg MJ, Kennedy D. Utilisation of a NSW teratology information service by pharmacists and patients referred by a pharmacist from 2000 to 2018. Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol 2020; 60: 412–418.
- 6. Kennedy DS. A to X: the problem of categorisation of drugs in pregnancy — an Australian perspective. Med J Aust 2011; 195: 572–574. https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2012/196/3/x-problem-categorisation-drugs-pregnancy-australian-perspective-1
Online responses are no longer available. Please refer to our instructions for authors page for more information.
No relevant disclosures.