Azithromycin commonly used in pregnancy

OB/GYN News, Oct 15, 2002 by Kathryn DeMott

BANFF, ALTA. -- Although the safety of azithromycin in pregnancy hasn't been adequately studied, findings from a recent study suggest that ob.gyns. are readily prescribing it to treat everything from chlamydia to upper respiratory infections.

Physicians may prefer azithromycin (Zithromax) to first-line antibiotics, such as erythromycin and amoxicillin, because it's well tolerated, Dr. William H. Taft III said at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society for Obstetrics and Gynecology By comparison, azithromycin has better tissue penetration and a broader antimicrobial spectrum. It also has less bothersome gastrointestinal side effects.

Among nonpregnant patients, azithromycin is indicated for the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia, chlamydia, cervicitis, cellulitis, and bronchitis, but it has never been studied for any of these conditions in pregnancy he said.

In a retrospective study of drugs prescribed during 17,732 pregnancies over a 48-month period, Dr. Taft and his associates at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, found that azithromycin was prescribed in 8% of the cases.

The majority of patients on the drug (836 women) received it in the third trimester, followed by the second trimester (488 women), and the first (143 women).