These are my links and notes on the subject: (This includes the info I
could find on breastfeeding as well.) These are bits and pieces of several sites, but since these took me a while to find, here they are for everyone.
CLICK HERE
CLICK HERE
-Most drugs are safe if:
They
are not excreted into the milk. Some drugs are just too big to get into
the milk. Examples are heparin, interferon, insulin, infliximab
(Remicade), etanercept (Enbrel).”
CLICK HERE
-Is
it Enbrel? That's one my derm would be willing to put me on while still
nursing. It's not bioavailable orally, so it's really not a bad bet.
-Dr. Hale's website: CLICK HERE There is a medications forum that you can check.
I'm
also on Enbrel - my doctor told me that it's ok to be on while
ttc/pregnant, and that on the record she can't tell me it's ok to take
while nursing, but off the record she would try it herself.
-….brought
them to her OB He read over it, and gave her approval to BF!!! He said
Enbrel is a class B drug like Tylenol...so it's safe to take while
breastfeeding.
CLICK HERE
-“For
those interested in nursing, the Enbrel molecule is too big to transfer
into breast milk and would be destroyed by the baby's digestive system
even if it did.”
CLICK HERE
-I
want to give hope to those mothers who are breastfeeding and want to
use Enbrel. I did some research with my Pediatrician and the leading
breastfeeding research PhD (Dr. David Hale) determined it doesn't pass
through breast milk. However, the pharmaceutical company won't ever
give that the OK. Too much risk.
CLICK HERE
-Enbrel
is FDA category B, but I decided to take advantage of my university
setting and tracked down a biochemist. We sat down and discussed
Enbrel.
If any of you ever consider using Enbrel in pregnancy,
here's what we concluded — your body treats Enbrel like an antibody.
There is a blood barrier between you and your baby so that your immune
system can't attack the baby. So the Enbrel should not be able to pass
through to the baby. And for those interested in nursing, the Enbrel
molecule is too big to transfer into breast milk and would be destroyed
by the baby's digestive system even if it did.
-I dug this out of the Raptiva U.S. prescribing literature...
Developmental
toxicity studies have been performed in rats and rabbits at doses
ranging from 60- to 100-fold higher than the human dose and have
revealed no evidence of harm to the fetus due to ENBREL. There are,
however, no studies in pregnant women. Because animal reproduction
studies are not always predictive of human response, this drug should
be used during pregnancy only if clearly needed. (Notice it does not
say “never use them.”)
This is a very helpful site for checking safety of Arthritis drugs:
CLICK HERE
-I'm just finishing a study of Remicade which is similar to Enbrel.
No Remicade was found in human milk at all.
I think it safe to use Enbrel or Remicade while breastfeeding.
Both of these are large molecular weight proteins that are not transported, nor penetrate by diffusion, into human milk.
Tom Hale Ph.D.
-Enbrel
and Remicade are both antibodies to tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and are
large molecular weight IgG monoclonal antibodies. In three
breastfeeding patients who have use this product, we found NO
Remicade(infliximab) in their milk from 1 hour to 7 days.
Thus I'm not worried at all about its use in breastfeeding mothers.
-Get “Medications and Mothers’ Milk” Tom Hale Ph.D. 2006 12th edition to read the published study
HOPE THIS IS A HELP!
CLICK HERE to visit the pregnancy and Enbrel thread.
I joins a study for pregnant women remaining on enbrel throughout their pregnancy.
Good luck!
Hi, I was on Enbrel and quit right around the time I thought I was pregnant. I think it's just one of those personal decisions you have to make about whether it's worth the risk...just because there hasn't been a lot of info out on the use while pregnant/nursing. I stayed off the whole time I was pregnant, just because I didn't want to take any chances, and we have a very healthy 3 month old now. However, about a month after delivering, I had a huge flare-up. I went to my doctor with information I had pulled off the internet about the molecules being too big to pass to breastmilk, and she did more research on her medical sites that said it could definitely pass but it was ultimately my decision. So, in my situation, I decided to just suck it up and continue to feed my baby untainted breastmilk. I guess it was a self sacrificing thing being that his food was more important at that time than my health. If it got to the point where I really felt like I had to start taking the medication again, I would do it, but I would most likely swtich the baby to formula. Again, this was just my story. Good luck to you!"I went to my doctor with information I had pulled off the internet
about the molecules being too big to pass to breastmilk, and she did
more research on her medical sites that said it could definitely pass
but it was ultimately my decision"
My doctors also did some research and unfortunately at this time the only information out there to ANYONE is that of one study of one mothers milk and she wasn't even breastfeeding at the time they tested her milk. Yes there was some detected in her milk, but that could simply be from the unused milk sitting there. My question for my doctors and when I spoke to Enbrel reps was if Enbrel cannot be ingested then why would it have any effect if ingested by an infant. They didn't have an answer, said they were just being cautious. Also the amount that was found in the test subjects milk was minuscule.
Unfortunately this isn't a subject where you can weight the facts as there aren't really facts out there yet. I made the very hard decision to go back on during my pregnancy but I will also add, I have RA in EVERY joint in my body, many joint replacements and fusions and am technically a "severe" case. If you could manage the pregnancy and post pregnancy off Enbrel or with Prednisone then that is great and what is recommended. Unfortunately for me I wasn't able to just suck it up as my health became as important as his. If his mother wasn't healthy or able to care for him, change diapers, pick him up, dress him, then well...that just wasn't an option!
Kudos to everyone and anyone who can do this without the meds, I am envious. For those that cannot it's a hard decision that only you can make. I weighed all the information and my husband and I made the decision to remain on it and so far all has been great! :)
Hi,
This site contains very awesome discussion and great sort of informative stuff useful one for many others needs this kind of stuff,..
best regards,..
Cavin
What you want to do is get your Rheumatologist to clear you for one
of the new biologics [anti-TNF] drugs, such as Remicade, Enbrel,
Humira......
BTW, HLA-B27 is not restricted to Ankylosing Spondylitis. It could
be any one of a number of autoimmune diseases. However, lower and upper
back pain, not as a result of an injury or accident, would seem to
indicate AS.
You might ask your doctor if you have psoriatic arthritis, which
also frequently is associated with the HLA-B27 antigen. This might
explain the pain in the areas other than the back.
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