United States
In 1979, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) introduced a classification of fetal risks due to pharmaceuticals. This was based on a similar system that was introduced in Sweden one year earlier.
The United States FDA has the following definitions for the pregnancy categories:
| United States FDA Pharmaceutical Pregnancy Categories | |
| Pregnancy Category A | Adequate and well-controlled human studies have failed to demonstrate a risk to the fetus in the first trimester of pregnancy (and there is no evidence of risk in later trimesters). |
| Pregnancy Category B | Animal reproduction studies have failed to demonstrate a risk to the fetus and there are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women OR Animal studies have shown an adverse effect, but adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women have failed to demonstrate a risk to the fetus in any trimester. |
| Pregnancy Category C | Animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus and there are no adequate and well-controlled studies in humans, but potential benefits may warrant use of the drug in pregnant women despite potential risks. |
| Pregnancy Category D | There is positive evidence of human fetal risk based on adverse reaction data from investigational or marketing experience or studies in humans, but potential benefits may warrant use of the drug in pregnant women despite potential risks. |
| Pregnancy Category X | Studies in animals or humans have demonstrated fetal abnormalities and/or there is positive evidence of human fetal risk based on adverse reaction data from investigational or marketing experience, and the risks involved in use of the drug in pregnant women clearly outweigh potential benefits. |
| Pregnancy Category N | FDA has not classified this drug. |
One characteristic of the FDA definitions of the pregnancy categories is that the FDA requires a relatively large amount of high-quality data on a pharmaceutical for it to be defined as Pregnancy Category A. As a result of this, many drugs that would be considered Pregnancy Category A in other countries are allocated to Category C by the FDA. See below.
The FDA has proposed updating its approach to labeling http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-11806.pdf
Read more about this topic: Pregnancy Category
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