According to animal experiments and clinical observations, the effects of drugs on embryos and fetuses can be roughly divided into three types: positive teratogenicity, possible teratogenicity and potential harm. Of course, their boundaries are not very strict. Be aware of the following classes of drugs that are more obviously harmful.
Anti-cancer drugs: can cause malformations, stillbirth, missing limbs, external ear deformities, cleft lip and palate, hydrocephalus, etc.
Hormone drugs: It has been reported that girls born to pregnant women who took estrogen early may develop vaginal adenocarcinoma during puberty and late adolescence. The androgen testosterone masculinizes the external genitalia of the female fetus. Before 14 weeks of pregnancy, if large doses or continuous application of adrenocortical hormones (such as cortisone, prednisone, etc.) can cause stillbirth, premature birth, cleft lip and palate, anencephaly and other malformations. Thyroid hormones also have teratogenic effects.
Antibiotics: Streptomycin, gentamicin, kanamycin, etc. can cause congenital deafness and damage the kidneys. Tetracyclines can cause skeletal developmental disorders, microlimb deformities, yellow stained deciduous teeth and enamel hypoplasia, and congenital cataracts. Erythromycin can cause fetal liver damage. Chloramphenicol may suppress bone marrow function and neonatal pulmonary hemorrhage. Sulfonamides, especially long-acting sulfonamides, can cause jaundice in newborns.
Sedatives: US protons can cause fetal growth retardation and congenital heart disease. Barbiturates can cause the fingers (toes) and nostrils to become shorter. Long-term use of hibernation can cause fetal retinopathy.
Vitamins: Vitamin A and folic acid deficiency can cause fetal malformations; but if pregnant women take too much vitamin A, it can also cause fetal malformations. Excessive vitamin D can cause fetal hypercalcemia, aortic and renal artery stenosis, aortic hypoplasia, mental retardation and hypertension. High amounts of vitamin K can cause jaundice in newborns.
Other drugs: Antipyretic and analgesic drugs such as aspirin and phenacetin can cause fetal skeletal malformations, nerve or kidney abnormalities. Antithyroid drugs can inhibit fetal thyroxine synthesis, leading to stillbirth or congenital cretinism. Sulfonylurea antidiabetic drugs can cause miscarriage, stillbirth and multiple malformations. Taking large doses of antimalarial drugs such as quinine can cause fetal retinal damage.
If a pregnant woman needs to use these drugs that have been proven to have adverse effects on the fetus due to illness, and she is in a teratogenic sensitive period, for the sake of eugenics, it is best to treat the mother first and then perform artificial abortion.