Hivid and Pregnancy: An Overview
(This medication is no longer available. This medication was not discontinued for safety reasons. The manufacturer of Hivid chose to stop making it because current HIV treatment guidelines recommended using newer medications, rather than Hivid.)
Hivid
® (
zalcitabine) is a prescription
AIDS and HIV medication. It is not known if Hivid is safe for use during pregnancy. However, in some circumstances, the benefits of Hivid may outweigh the potential risks.
Hivid and Pregnancy Category C
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) uses a pregnancy category system to classify the possible risks to a fetus when a specific medicine is taken during pregnancy. Pregnancy Category C is given to medicines that have not been studied in pregnant humans, but do appear to cause harm to the fetus in animal studies. Also, medicines that have not been studied in any pregnant women or animals are automatically given a pregnancy Category C rating. Although there have not been adequate studies done on the use of Hivid in pregnant women, Hivid has been studied in pregnant animals.
Hivid has been studied in pregnant mice and rats. When extremely high doses of Hivid were given to pregnant mice and rats, there was an increased risk of miscarriages and birth defects. However, it is important to note that animals do not always respond to medicines in the same way that humans do. Therefore, a pregnancy Category C medicine may be given to pregnant women if the healthcare provider believes that the benefits to the pregnant woman outweigh any possible risks to the unborn child.
