Effects of maternal modafinil treatment on fetal development and neonatal growth parameters - a multicenter case series of the European Network of Teratology Information Services (ENTIS).

OBJECTIVE: In recent years, safety concerns about modafinil exposure during pregnancy have emerged. In particular, increased risks for major congenital anomalies (MCA) and impaired fetal growth were reported, although study results were conflicting. Our investigation aims to examine previously reported safety signals. METHOD: Multicenter case series based on data from 18 Teratology Information Services from 12 countries. Modafinil exposed pregnancies with an estimated date of birth before August 2019 were included in this study. For prospectively ascertained pregnancies, cumulative incidences of pregnancy outcomes, rate of nonchromosomal MCA in first trimester exposed pregnancies and percentiles of neonatal/infant weight and head circumference (HC) were calculated. Potential dose-dependent effects on fetal growth were explored by linear regression models. Retrospectively ascertained cases were screened for pattern of MCA and other adverse events. RESULTS: One hundred and seventy-five prospectively ascertained cases were included, of which 173 were exposed at least during the first trimester. Cumulative incidences for live birth, spontaneous abortion and elective termination of pregnancy were 76.9% (95% CI, 68.0%-84.8%), 9.3% (95% CI, 5.0%-16.9%), and 13.9% (95% CI, 8.1%-23.1%), respectively. Nonchromosomal MCA was present in 3/150 live births, corresponding to an MCA rate of 2.0% (95%CI, 0.6%-6.1%), none were reported in pregnancy losses. Compared to reference standards, birth weight (BW) tended to be lower and neonatal HC to be smaller in exposed newborns (data available for 144 and 73 of 153 live births, respectively). In nonadjusted linear regression models, each 100 mg increase of average dosage per pregnancy day was associated with a decrease in standard deviation score (SDS) of -0.28 SDS (95% CI, -0.45 to -0.10) for BW and of -0.28 SDS (95% CI, -0.56 to 0.01) for HC. Screening of 22 retrospectively reported cases did not reveal any specific pattern of MCA or other adverse outcomes. CONCLUSION: The results do not indicate an increased risk of MCA after in utero exposure to modafinil, but a tendency toward lower BW and reduced neonatal HC. However, these findings should be regarded as preliminary. Until further studies allow for a definite conclusion, modafinil should not be used during pregnancy.

Pregnancy outcomes in women on metformin for diabetes or other indications among those seeking teratology information services.

AIMS: Metformin is used to treat type 2 diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome associated infertility, and gestational diabetes. This study aims to evaluate the safety of metformin in early pregnancy. METHOD: We evaluated the risk of major birth defects and pregnancy losses in a cohort of pregnant women exposed to metformin during the first trimester for different indications relative to a matched unexposed reference group. RESULTS: The risk of major birth defects was 5.1% (20/392) in pregnancies exposed to metformin during the first trimester and 2.1% (9/431) in the reference group [adjusted odds ratio (OR) 1.70; 95% CI 0.70-4.38]. Among metformin users, this risk was 7.8% (17/219) in patients with pre-gestational diabetes and 1.7% (3/173) in those without this diagnosis. Compared to the unexposed reference, the OR for metformin user with diabetes was 3.95 (95% CI 1.77-9.41) and for metformin with other indications it was 0.83 (95% CI 0.18-2.81). The risk of pregnancy losses (spontaneous abortions and stillbirths) was 20.8% in women on metformin during the first trimester and 10.8% in the reference group [adjusted hazard ratio (HR) 1.57; 95% CI 0.90-2.74]. The risks for women on metformin with and without pre-gestational diabetes were 24.0% and 16.8% respectively, with adjusted HR of 2.51 (95% CI 1.44-4.36) and 1.38 (95% CI 0.74-2.59) when compared to the reference. CONCLUSION: Pregnant women with pre-gestational diabetes on metformin are at a higher risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes than the general population. This appears to be due to the underlying diabetes since women on metformin for other indications do not present meaningfully increased risks.

Evaluation of in vivo analgesic activity of Scrophularia kotscyhana and isolation of bioactive compounds through activity-guided fractionation.

The present study was undertaken to evaluate the in vivo analgesic activities of the extracts prepared from the aerial parts and roots of Scrophularia kotscyhana and to isolate the bioactive metabolites from the most active extract. Analgesic activities of all extracts and subextracts at the doses of 5, 10 and 30 mg/kg (i.p.) were examined using hot plate test in mice. Among the tested extracts, MeOH extract prepared from the aerial parts and the n-butanol subextract prepared thereof displayed the best analgesic activity at all doses. Phytochemical studies on n-butanol subextract led to the isolation of two new iridoid glycosides as an inseparable mixture, 8-O-acetyl-4'-O-(E)-(p-coumaroyl)-harpagide (1) and 8-O-acetyl-4'-O-(Z)-(p-coumaroyl)-harpagide (2) along with five known secondary metabolites, ß-sitosterol 3-O-ß-glucopyranoside (3), apigenin 7-O-ß-glucopyranoside (4), apigenin 7-O-rutinoside (5), luteolin 7-O-ß-glucopyranoside (6) and luteolin 7-O-rutinoside (7). The iridoid mixture (1 and 2), 3 and 4 elicited significant inhibition of pain at 5 mg/kg dose.