Zoloft Use In Pregnancy & Lactation

Pregnancy: Reproduction studies have been performed in rats and rabbits at doses up to approximately 20 times and 10 times the maximum daily human mg/kg dose, respectively. There was no evidence of teratogenicity at any dose level. At the dose level corresponding to approximately 2.5 to 10 times the maximum daily human mg/kg dose, however, sertraline was associated with delayed ossification in fetuses, probably secondary to effects on the dams.
There was decreased neonatal survival following maternal administration of sertraline at doses approximately five times the maximum daily human mg/kg dose. Similar effects on neonatal survival have been described for other antidepressant drugs. The clinical significance of these effects is unknown.
There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Because animal reproduction studies are not always predictive of human response, sertraline should be used during pregnancy only if the perceived benefits outweigh the risks.
If sertraline is used during pregnancy and/or lactation, the physician should be aware that symptoms, including those compatible with withdrawal reactions, have been reported in some neonates whose mothers had been on SSRI antidepressants, including sertraline.
Women of childbearing potential should employ an adequate method of contraception if taking sertraline.
Exposure during late pregnancy to SSRIs may have an increased risk for persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN). PPHN occurs in 1 to 2 per 1,000 live births in the general population and is associated with substantial neonatal morbidity and mortality. In a retrospective case-control study of 377 women whose infants were born with PPHN and 836 women whose infants were born healthy, the risk for developing PPHN was approximately six-fold higher for infants exposed to SSRIs after the 20^th week of gestation compared to infants who had not been exposed to antidepressants during pregnancy. A study of 831,324 infants born in Sweden in 1997 to 2005 found a PPHN risk ratio of 2.4 (95% CI, 1.2 to 4.3) associated with patient-reported maternal use of SSRIs "in early pregnancy" and a PPHN risk ratio of 3.6 (95% CI, 1.2 to 8.3) associated with a combination of patient-reported maternal use of SSRIs "in early pregnancy" and an antenatal SSRI prescription "in later pregnancy."
Lactation: Isolated studies in small numbers of nursing mothers and their infants indicated negligible or undetectable levels of sertraline in infant serum, although levels in breast milk were more concentrated than in maternal serum. Use in nursing mothers is not recommended unless, in the judgment of the physician, the benefits outweigh the risks.
Fertility: There is no clinical trial data on fertility. In animal studies, no effect on fertility parameters was observed (see Pharmacology: Toxicology: Preclinical safety data under Actions).