Will taking Ofloxacin be harmful during pregnancy?
Editor, MIMS,
New Delhi
Q: I cut my toe by glass and was given Ofloxacin (Taracid) 200 mg. At that time I didn't know about my pregnancy, which is about 7 weeks now. The conception might have happened while I was taking the antibiotic. My foot was swollen for a month and I was given antibiotics. I went for an ultrasound and the heartbeat of the fetus is OK. Will antibiotic be harmful to my baby?
A:Good clinical practice demands that no drug (that is not permitted for use during pregnancy) should ever be prescribed to women of reproductive age group, who or whose sexual partners are not using contraception/condoms. If it becomes imperative to prescribe such a drug then a test should be done to exclude pregnancy.Because of obvious ethical reasons, it is never possible to conduct clinical trials in humans to see if a drug would or would not cause fetal toxicity. However reports on inadvertent use of ofloxacin during pregnancy have not shown any adverse effects.Besides you would have consumed no more than 400 mg a day of Ofloxacin, which comes to 8 mg per kg of your body weight. Animal studies have shown that such a dose does not have any adverse effect on late fetal development.Since the ultrasound is normal, there is apparently no problem. As an abundant precaution, one should do ultrasound at regular intervals.