Is Phencyclidine 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 Phencyclidine. The text below is quoted from that source — it is not our own verdict.
Summary of use during breastfeeding
A single case of phencyclidine use has been reported in which a small amount of phencyclidine was detected in breastmilk over 6 weeks after use of an unknown quantity of the drug. Effects on the breastfed infant are unknown.
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 20-year-old pregnant woman was hospitalized 3 days after having a psychotic reaction after smoking phencyclidine. She was hospitalized and treated initially with intramuscular haloperidol and later with oral chlorpromazine. Thirty-six days later she delivered an infant. A breastmilk sample was obtained 5 days later (presumably 44 days after smoking phencyclidine). Phencyclidine was detected in breast milk at a level of 3.9 mcg/L.[1]
Infant Levels. Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
“No published information” means the studies do not exist yet — not that Phencyclidine 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 “Phencyclidine” (LM1156). 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.