Is Pentobarbital safe while breastfeeding?
Here is what LactMed, the Drugs and Lactation Database published by the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), reports about Pentobarbital. The text below is quoted from that source — it is not our own verdict.
Summary of use during breastfeeding
Because there is little published experience with pentobarbital during breastfeeding, other agents may be preferred, especially while nursing a newborn or preterm infant. If pentobarbital is used, monitor the infant for sedation, poor feeding and poor weight gain.
Effects on the breastfed infant
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Effects on milk supply
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Levels in milk
Maternal Levels. A mother who was 4 days postpartum had taken pentobarbital 100 mg daily for 3 days. A milk level of 170 mcg/L was measured 19 hours after the previous dose.[1]
Infant Levels. Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Alternatives LactMed lists
“No published information” means the studies do not exist yet — not that Pentobarbital is known to be harmful, and not that it is known to be safe. Your prescriber or pharmacist can weigh your baby's age and whether a better-studied alternative would do the same job. Worth asking before stopping a medicine you need.
Source: Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), via NCBI Bookshelf, record “Pentobarbital” (LM503). LactMed on NCBI Bookshelf. LactMed is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Educational summary of an authoritative source — not medical advice. Never start, stop, or change a medicine while breastfeeding without confirming with your doctor.