Is Propafenone safe while breastfeeding?
Here is what NIH LactMed, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's authority on medicines and breastfeeding, reports about Propafenone. This is a summary of that source — not our own verdict.
Effects on the breastfed infant
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Effects on milk supply
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Levels in milk
Maternal Levels. On the third postpartum day, one woman taking propafenone 300 mg orally 3 times daily had milk levels just before the morning dose of 32 and 47 mcg/L of propafenone and hydroxypropafenone, respectively. The authors estimated that a fully breastfed would receive a dose of propafenone and its metabolite of about 0.03% of the mother's weight-adjusted dosage.[ 1 ] One mother (time postpartum not stated) took a single dose of propafenone 150 mg orally. The highest milk propafenone level was 37.4 mcg/L at 2 hours after the dose. By 6 hours after the dose, the drug was undetectable ( 10 mcg/L). The highest milk 5-hydroxypropafenone level was 102 mcg/L at 2 hours after the dose. By 6 hours after the dose, the level was 19.8 mcg/L and by 12 hours it was undetectable ( 10 mcg/L) in milk. The authors estimated that an exclusively breastfed infant would receive 0.1% of the maternal weight-adjusted dosage of propafenone as drug and metabolite.[ 2 ] Infant Levels. Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
“No published information” means the studies do not exist yet — not that Propafenone is known to be harmful, and not that it is known to be safe. Your prescriber or pharmacist can weigh your baby's age and whether a better-studied alternative would do the same job. Worth asking before stopping a medicine you need.
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.