Is Fentanyl safe while breastfeeding?

Effects on the breastfed infant

Fentanyl was possibly the cause of statistically significant, but clinically unimportant, lower neurobehavioral scores in a group of 32 newborns who were less than 24 hours old and whose mothers had received epidural fentanyl during labor.[ 23 ] An epidural fentanyl dosage greater than 150 mcg during labor was associated with slightly lower neurobehavioral scores in the newborns of 177 breastfeeding mothers on postpartum day 1 compared to a lower total dosage or to no fentanyl;[ 2 ] however, this might have been a chance association[ 24 ] and was probably due to placental transfer of fentanyl prior to delivery and not from breastmilk after delivery. All women also received epidural bupivacaine. A woman was using a transdermal fentanyl patch for chronic back pain during pregnancy and postpartum. The mother required additional analgesia during labor and the infant required treatment for neonatal abstinence syndrome. By 2 weeks postpartum, the mother was using a fentanyl patch in a dosage of 100 mcg/hour which was changed every other day, and the infant was being fed the mother's milk every 3 hours. The infant had no additional medical problems and fed well until discharge after day 27 of life, gaining 500 grams.[ 22 ] A search was performed of the shared database of all U.S. poison control centers for the time period of 2001 to 2017 for calls regarding medications and breastfeeding. Of 2319 calls in which an infant was exposed to a substance via breastmilk, 7 were classified as resulting in a major adverse effect, and one of these involved fentanyl. A one-month-old infant was exposed to fentanyl, morphine, oxycodone, and unspecified benzodiazepines. The infant was admitted to the intensive care unit and described as being agitated and irritable and having tachycardia, confusion, drowsiness, lethargy, miosis, respiratory depression, acidosis, and hyperglycemia. The dosages, routes of administration, and extent of breastfeeding were not reported and the infant survived.

Effects on milk supply

Fentanyl can increase serum prolactin.[ 26 , 27 ] However, the prolactin level in a mother with established lactation may not affect her ability to breastfeed. Five women who were 6 to 15 weeks postpartum were given single doses of 100 mcg of fentanyl, 2 mg of midazolam and 2.5 mg/kg of propofol intravenously before undergoing general anesthesia. The women's milk output following the surgical procedure was less than half of the normal milk output of nursing mothers. The authors speculated that milk volume might be reduced postoperatively because of perioperative fluid restriction and volume losses, as well as stress-induced inhibition of milk production.[ 20 ] In 58 breastfeeding mothers who received an epidural fentanyl dosage greater than 150 mcg during labor, 21% reported more difficulty in establishing breastfeeding at 24 hours after delivery compared to 10% of mothers who received to a lower dosage or to no fentanyl. There was no difference in breastfeeding difficulty noted between the groups 24 hours after delivery as determined by a lactation consultant. Women in the high-dose group who could be contacted were more likely to discontinue breastfeeding by 6 weeks after delivery and there was a higher rate of breastfeeding discontinuation at 6 weeks among mothers who reported breastfeeding difficulty 24 hours after delivery.[ 2 ] A relatively high dropout rate from the study at 6 weeks clouds the results.[ 24 ] A retrospective study of a random sample of 425 mothers delivering in a maternity unit found a dose-related increased risk of bottle feeding at hospital discharge associated with fentanyl administered during labor.[ 28 ] A prospective cohort study compared women who received continuous epidural analgesia with fentanyl and either bupivacaine or ropivacaine during labor and delivery (n = 52) to women who received no analgesia (n = 63). The average total fentanyl dosage was 124 mcg and the average total infusion time from start to delivery was 219 minutes. T

Levels in milk

Plasma fentanyl levels of 0.2 to 1.2 mcg/L are required for analgesia via the nonepidural route and plasma levels over 1 to 2 mcg/L may cause respiratory depression. Plasma levels are markedly lower when the epidural route is used. The oral bioavailability of fentanyl is 33% in adults. The usual intravenous of fentanyl for an infant is 1 to 2 mcg/kg. Fentanyl is metabolized to norfentanyl and inactive metabolites. Maternal Levels. Eight women who had undergone cesarean section received fentanyl 100 mcg epidurally immediately after delivery. Fentanyl was undetectable ( 0.1 mcg/L) in colostrum at about 1 hour after the dose.[ 17 ] Thirteen women were given a single fentanyl 2 mcg/kg intravenous dose during either cesarean section or postpartum tubal ligation. Colostrum was collected at 0.75, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 hours after the dose. The average peak fentanyl level was 0.40 mcg/L and occurred 45 minutes after the dose. Average levels declined to 0.22 mcg/L at 2 hours and to 0.15 mcg/L at 4 hours then to the lower limit of the assay (0.05 mcg/L) at 6, 8, and 10 hours after the dose.[ 18 ] Based on the peak milk fentanyl level reported in this study, an exclusively breastfed infant would receive a fentanyl dose of 0.06 mcg/kg daily. Ten women were given 50 to 100 mcg of intravenous fentanyl every hour during labor. Their breastmilk was sampled 4 and 24 hours after delivery. The cumulative maternal fentanyl dosages ranged from 50 to 400 mcg and the longest time from last dose to delivery was 3.1 hours (range 0 to 3.1 hours). Fentanyl was undetectable ( 0.05 mcg/L) in the milk of 8 of the women 4 hours after delivery and in 2 of the women 24 hours after delivery. Detectable milk levels of fentanyl ranged from 0.12 to 0.15 mcg/L at 4 hours after delivery and from 0.12 to 0.14 mcg/L at 24 hours after delivery.[ 19 ] Based on the highest milk level reported in this study, an exclusively breastfed infant would receive a fentanyl dosage of 0.02 mcg/kg daily. Five women who were

Alternatives LactMed lists

• Acetaminophen
• Butorphanol
• Hydromorphone
• Ibuprofen