Is Glyburide safe while breastfeeding?
Here is what NIH LactMed, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's authority on medicines and breastfeeding, reports about Glyburide. This is a summary of that source — not our own verdict.
Effects on the breastfed infant
The blood glucose level was normal in one breastfed infant whose mothers was taking oral glyburide 5 mg daily.[ 3 ]
Effects on milk supply
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Levels in milk
Maternal Levels. Eight women who had recently delivered were given a single dose of glyburide 5 mg (n = 6) or 10 mg (n = 2) orally. Glyburide was undetectable ( 5 mcg/L) in milk at 2, 4, 6 and 8 hours after the dose. The authors estimated that the maximum dosages that a fully breastfed infant would receive with the 5 and 10 mg doses are 1.5% and 0.7% of the maternal weight-adjusted dosage, respectively.[ 3 , 4 ] In a separate study reported in the same paper, 3 women who had delivered via cesarean section and were receiving glyburide 5 mg daily in the immediate postoperative period had milk glyburide levels measured. Trough glyburide milk levels were undetectable ( 80 mcg/L).[ 3 ] A mother with diabetes caused by a genetic mutation required a very high dose of 85 mg daily of glyburide, which was increased to 90 mg daily during pregnancy. Her milk glyburide levels were 7.3 mcg/L on day 3 postpartum and 3.1 mcg/L on day 6, although the times with respect to the dosage were not reported. The authors estimated that the breastfed infant would receive a daily dosage of less than 0.01 mg daily.[ 5 ] Infant Levels. A preterm infant whose mother was taking a high dose of glyburide of 90 mg daily at delivery was hypoglycemic at birth and required high doses of intravenous glucose for 8 days after birth. The infant was breastfed (extent not stated) and had glyburide serum levels of 9 mcg/L on day 3 postpartum and 9.8 mcg/L on day 19. The authors speculated that breastfeeding might have prolonged the infant's high serum glyburide levels, although they calculated that the infant would have received less than 0.01 mg of the drug daily via breastmilk.[ 5 ]
Alternatives LactMed lists
Source: NIH LactMed (National Library of Medicine).
Educational summary of an authoritative source — not medical advice. Never start, stop, or change a medicine while breastfeeding without confirming with your doctor.