Norby, Ulrike, Cuppers, Benedikte-Noël , Hristoskova, Sashka Angelova, Desai, Monali, Harmark, Linda and Steel, Michael (2021) Online information discrepancies regarding safety of medicine use during pregnancy and lactation: a ConcePTION study. Expert Opinion on Drug Safety, https: (https:). pp. 1-8. ISSN https://doi.org/10.1080/14740338.2021.1935865

Abstract

Abstract
Introduction
Inconsistencies in information concerning the safety of medicines during pregnancy and lactation might result in non-optimal treatment to pregnant and lactating women, subsequent risks to the fetus and to unnecessary weaning from breastfeeding.
Objectives
To analyze information discrepancies concerning medicines during pregnancy and lactation between different on-line sources for patients and health care professionals (HCPs) in four European languages.
Methods
The medicines analyzed were ibuprofen, ondansetron, olanzapine, fingolimod, methylphenidate and adalimumab. A standardized google search was performed in Swedish, Dutch, French and English. The identified recommendations were classified into data source categories, e.g regulatory sources, scientific sources and blogs/forums/social media for patients and for HCPs. The recommendations were compared between the data source categories for each medicine and language: 24 comparisons for pregnancy and 24 for lactation.
Results
For patients, 46% (11/24 comparisons) of the pregnancy recommendations were consistent between all information sources, while for lactation, 17% (4/24) were consistent. The corresponding figures for HCP data sources were 54% (13/24) and 21% (5/24). The regulatory sources were generally more conservative than other sources. Recommendations from five TIS centers (Teratology Information Services) were consistent in 93% (25/27) of the comparisons for pregnancy and 68% (15/22) for lactation.
Conclusion
Discrepancies in online information sources regarding medicines during pregnancy and lactation are common. These differences are more pronounced for lactation than for pregnancy. Recommendations from TIS centers showed better consistency, indicating more consensus on a scientific level. Additional work is needed to harmonize information within and between countries, to avoid conflicting messages.

Item Type:	Article
Date Deposited:	06 Jul 2021 00:45
Last Modified:	06 Jul 2021 00:45
URI:	https://oak.novartis.com/id/eprint/43416