Excretion of drugs in human breast milk
The present report briefly discusses some of the morphological, physiological, and compositional aspects of animal and human breast milk and how these characteristics might be important for the accumulation of drugs and foreign compounds. In addition, a study is described confirming the presence of caffeine, codeine, morphine, phenacetin, acetaminophen, and salicylic acid in the breast milk of a lactating mother following oral administration of a combination analgesic containing aspirin, phenacetin, caffeine, and codeine. Although the study is limited to one subject, it has provided critically needed data on the rates of appearance in, and elimination of these drugs from, breast milk. A similar amount of information is presented on phenacetin, also a component of the analgesic mixture, which has not been previously reported to enter human milk. The distribution of these drugs between the slightly more acidic breast milk and the relatively neutral plasma is consistent with their weakly basic, acidic, or relatively neutral properties. In general, the study shows that codeine and morphine milk concentrations are higher than, salicylic acid milk levels are much lower than, and phenacetin, caffeine, and acetaminophen milk concentrations are relatively similar to their respective plasma levels. It is projected, from estimated steady-state milk concentrations of the drugs and their metabolites studied, that very low percentages of the therapeutic dosages (less than 0.7%) would be excreted in mother's milk, too low an amount to be clinically significant to the infant.
- Research Organization:
- Wellcome Research Laboratories, Research Triangle Park, NC
- OSTI ID:
- 6844484
- Journal Information:
- Drug Metab. Rev.; (United States), Vol. 12:2
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
DRUGS
EXCRETION
MILK
QUANTITATIVE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
BUILDUP
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
LACTATION
MAMMARY GLANDS
MAN
METABOLISM
METABOLITES
PH VALUE
PHYSIOLOGY
QUANTITY RATIO
ANIMALS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BODY
BODY FLUIDS
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
CLEARANCE
FOOD
GLANDS
MAMMALS
MATERIALS
ORGANS
PRIMATES
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400102 - Chemical & Spectral Procedures