Women who take certain over-the-counter painkillers during the early stages of pregnancy are more likely to give birth to infants with rare birth defects, a new study suggests.
The study, which has been published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, shows that women who took painkillers such as naproxen (the drug used in Aleve) or aspirin during pregnancy were three times as likely to have children with birth defects such as amniotic band syndrome (a condition that leads to clubfoot) or anaphthalmia and microphothalmia (conditions where children are born with abnormally small eyeballs, or no eyeballs at all), Reuters reported.
Additionally, the study found that the use of these painkillers early in one’s pregnancy increased the risk of spina bifida by 60 percent, and that the risk of developing a cleft palate increased from 30 to 80 percent.
In the study, interviews were conducted with 15,000 women who had given birth to babies with birth defects and 5,500 women who had given birth to babies without defects. The interviews included questions about any painkillers they ingested during the first stage of their pregnancies.
According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, anophthalmia and microphthalmia occurs in one out of every 5,300 U.S. births. Amniotic band syndrome is even rarer, occurring in approximately one out of every in 10,000 births.
Co-author of the study Martha Werler noted that although the results do not prove that painkillers are the sole cause of these rare birth defects, they are a warning sign. She also recommended that further research be conducted.
If you or someone you know has a child who has been harmed by painkillers, you may be entitled to compensation. Contact Sokolove Law for a free legal consultation.