Diuretic (Carbonic Anhydrase Inhibitor)
PREGNANCY RECOMMENDATION: No Human Data—No Relevant Animal Data
BREASTFEEDING RECOMMENDATION: No Human Data—Probably Compatible
PREGNANCY SUMMARY
No reports of human use of dichlorphenamide during pregnancy have been located. The drug is best avoided during organogenesis.
FETAL RISK SUMMARY
Dichlorphenamide is a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor used in the treatment of glaucoma. Its mechanism of action is similar to, but much more potent than, acetazolamide or methazolamide (see also Acetazolamide and Methazolamide). The drug is teratogenic in chicks, mice, and rats, producing otolith deficits and forelimb deformities in the fetuses of the latter two species, respectively (1). Skeletal anomalies were observed in rats at a dose 100 times the human dose (2).
It is not known if dichlorphenamide crosses the human placenta. The molecular weight (about 305) is low enough, however, that passage to the embryo or fetus should be expected.
BREASTFEEDING SUMMARY
No reports describing the use of dichlorphenamide during lactation have been located. The molecular weight (about 305) is low enough that excretion into milk should be expected.
References
1.Shepard TH. Catalog of Teratogenic Agents. 6th ed. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1989:213.
2.Product information. Daranide. Merck, 2000.