Placental Transfer of Intravenous Nicardipine and Disposition into Breast Milk During the Control of Hypertension in Women with Pre-eclampsia

Objective: To assess nicardipine safety for fetuses and neonates.

Methods: Nicardipine was measured in maternal plasma (MP), umbilical cord arterial (UaP) and venous (UvP) plasma and breast milk (BrM) of 18 women with severe preeclampsia.

Results: Nicardipine was infused for a mean 11.9 ± 10.5 days before and 4.6 ± 1.6 days after delivery. Nicardipine dose and MP concentration were linearly correlated, as were MP with UaP, UvP, and BrM concentrations. The BrM/MP ratio was 0.06 to 0.30. The mean relative infant dose was 0.082%.

Conclusion: Nicardipine is safe for fetuses and neonates due to its low levels of placental transfer and disposition in BrM.