Question

I am a breastfeeding mother and i want to know if it is safe to use Levocetirizine Hydrochloride? Is Levocetirizine Hydrochloride safe for nursing mother and child? Does Levocetirizine Hydrochloride extracts into breast milk? Does Levocetirizine Hydrochloride has any long term or short term side effects on infants? Can Levocetirizine Hydrochloride influence milk supply or can Levocetirizine Hydrochloride decrease milk supply in lactating mothers?

Levocetirizine Hydrochloride lactation summary

Levocetirizine Hydrochloride usage has low risk in breastfeeding
  • DrLact safety Score for Levocetirizine Hydrochloride is 3 out of 8 which is considered Low Risk as per our analyses.
  • A safety Score of 3 indicates that usage of Levocetirizine Hydrochloride may cause some minor side effects in breastfed baby.
  • Our study of different scientific research indicates that Levocetirizine Hydrochloride may cause moderate to no side effects in lactating mother.
  • Most of scientific studies and research papers declaring usage of Levocetirizine Hydrochloride low risk in breastfeeding are based on normal dosage and may not hold true for higher dosage.
  • While using Levocetirizine Hydrochloride We suggest monitoring child for possible reactions. It is also important to understand that side effects vary largely based on age of breastfed child and time of medication in addition to dosage.
  • Score calculated using the DrLact safety Version 1.2 model, this score ranges from 0 to 8 and measures overall safety of drug in lactation. Scores are primarily calculated using publicly available case studies, research papers, other scientific journals and publically available data.

Answer by Dr. Ru: About Levocetirizine Hydrochloride usage in lactation

Second generation antihistamine drug derived from piperazine with a minimal sedative effect and low toxicity even at higher dose. On latest update no published data about breastfeeding were found. However, it is the R-enantiomer of cetirizine which is considered to be safe while breastfeeding. No short or long-term side effects were found in an infant with a mother who was treated with Cetirizine in the first month post delivery for pemphigus (Westermann 2012). Because of a high plasma protein binding capacity, excretion into breast milk seems to be unlikely. The British Society of Immunology and Allergy rates Cetirizine as compatible with breastfeeding (Powell 2007).

Synonyms of Levocetirizine Hydrochloride

UNII-W69HSF2416
Acetic acid, 2-(2-(4-((R)-(4-chlorophenyl)phenylmethyl)-1-piperazinyl)ethoxy)-, hydrochloride (1:1)
Levocetirizine monohydrochloride
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