The use of thalidomide was prevalent in the 60s after the world war. It was mainly used as a sedative and almost one out of seven Americans was using thalidomide. The marketers of the drug had declared the drug as safe even for pregnant women and their unborn babies. It was being used off-label for the treatment of morning sickness and many obstetricians prescribed it to their patients ("thalidomide tragedy: Lessons for drug safety and regulation," n.d.). It was until 1961 that the drug started being associated with the severe birth defects that were being observed on children born during that period. These babies were born without limbs or with shortened and deformed limbs. It was after this unfortunate turn of events that the marketers of the drug who had denied claims of the drug being unsafe started withdrawing the drug from the market.
This outbreak of congenital malformations attributable to thalidomide use taught the world a harsh lesson of the need to tightly regulate drugs regarding their safety. Of this incident, the FDA started being very strict with drug approval. It was during this time that Kefauver-Harris Drug Amendments Act in 1962 was passed by congress with the aim of tightening the rules of drug approval. It now takes about 8-12 years before a drug is approved for use in the market. In my view, thalidomide should not be banned because it is useful in the management of some medical conditions such as inflammation associated with leprosy. What is important is for physicians to take a thorough obstetric history of a patient before prescribing the drug. I think the periodic outbreaks of thalidomide-induced congenital defects is attributable to the prescription of the drug to women without taking their obstetric history properly. What needs to be done is that physicians should take a proper obstetric history of patients before prescribing the drug. Patients on this drug should also be warned about the teratogenicity of the drug hence they should not plan to get pregnant when they are on this drug.
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Trimethoprim is an antibiotic that is used in the treatment of ear infections among other bacterial infections. The drug is a teratogen and should be avoided during pregnancy, especially during the first trimester (TH_NK, n.d.). It interferes with folate metabolism and can therefore lead to congenital diseases such as spina bifida.
References
TH_NK, H. (n.d.). Newcastle hospitals - Teratogenic drugs . Newcastle Hospitals. https://www.newcastle-hospitals.org.uk/services/ng_npcg_precouncil_teratogenic-drugs.html#:~:text=A%20drug%20is%20a%20teratogen,in%20the%20fetus%20or%20child
The thalidomide tragedy: Lessons for drug safety and regulation . (n.d.). Helix Magazine | Connecting Science to You. https://helix.northwestern.edu/article/thalidomide-tragedy-lessons-drug-safety-and-regulation
