Can I take codeine in early pregnancy?
Avoid codeine during early pregnancy. Like oxycodone, codeine crosses the placenta and can cause congenital anomalies, congenital heart defects, and affect fetal growth. Early pregnancy is when your baby’s organs form, making them most vulnerable to opioids.
Your doctor can recommend safer options, like acetaminophen or physical therapy. If you’re taking codeine and discover you’re pregnant, contact your healthcare provider immediately for risk assessment.
What shouldn’t be mixed with oxycodone?
Never mix oxycodone with alcohol, benzodiazepines, or other CNS depressants. These combinations increase opioid overdose risk and perinatal mortality. Avoid muscle relaxers, sleep aids, and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs unless your doctor approves. During pregnancy, these drug interactions can cause respiratory depression and maternal toxicity, affecting you and your baby’s neurodevelopmental outcomes.
Always tell your healthcare provider about all opioid medications and supplements you’re taking.
Is oxycodone stronger than morphine?
Oxycodone is about 1.5 times stronger than morphine when taken orally. Both are powerful opioids that bind to receptors in your brain and affect fetal development. During pregnancy, both pose risks, including congenital heart defects, fetal growth restriction, and neonatal withdrawal.
Does oxycodone make you sleepy?
Oxycodone causes drowsiness and sedation by affecting your central nervous system and blood-brain barrier. This sleepiness increases fall risk during pregnancy and indicates the drug is crossing the placenta at levels that could cause fetal effects.
If you experience significant drowsiness, contact your doctor immediately. They may need to adjust your opioid treatment program or find safer pain management alternatives to prevent maternal and infant health complications.
Does oxycodone affect getting pregnant?
Oxycodone can interfere with fertility by disrupting the reproductive hormones that impact ovulation and egg quality. It may affect your menstrual cycle and interfere with implantation when the fertilized egg attaches to the uterine wall. Maternal drug use can also impact fetal-placental development and cause feeding problems later. If you’re trying to conceive, discuss alternatives with your doctor.
Resources
Lind JN, Interrante JD, Ailes EC, Gilboa SM, Khan S, Frey MT, Dawson AL, Honein MA, Dowling NF, Razzaghi H, Creanga AA, Broussard CS. Maternal Use of Opioids During Pregnancy and Congenital Malformations: A Systematic Review. Pediatrics. 2017 Jun;139(6):e20164131. doi: 10.1542/peds.2016-4131. PMID: 28562278; PMCID: PMC5561453.
Erin Kelty, Mishka Terplan, Carol Orr, David B. Preen, Neonatal Outcomes Associated With in Utero Exposure to Oxycodone, Overall and by Trimester of Exposure: A Retrospective Cohort Study, The Journal of Pain, Volume 24, Issue 4, 2023, Pages 617-626, ISSN 1526-5900,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpain.2022.11.007.
Yazdy MM, Desai RJ, Brogly SB. Prescription Opioids in Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes: A Review of the Literature. J Pediatr Genet. 2015 Apr 1;4(2):56-70. doi: 10.1055/s-0035-1556740. PMID: 26998394; PMCID: PMC4795985.
Odegaard, K.E., Schaal, V.L., Clark, A.R. et al. Characterization of the intergenerational impact of in utero and postnatal oxycodone exposure. Transl Psychiatry 10, 329 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-020-01012-z
Wen X, Wang S, Lewkowitz AK, Ward KE, Brousseau EC, Meador KJ. Maternal Complications and Prescription Opioid Exposure During Pregnancy: Using Marginal Structural Models. Drug Saf. 2021 Dec;44(12):1297-1309. doi: 10.1007/s40264-021-01115-6. Epub 2021 Oct 5. PMID: 34609720; PMCID: PMC8830421.
Giovannini, E.; Bonasoni, M.P.; Pascali, J.P.; Bini, C.; Pelletti, G.; Gualandi, A.; Dal Lago, G.; Mercati, A.; Mariotti, B.; Pasini, G.P.; et al. Fetal and Infant Effects of Maternal Opioid Use during Pregnancy: A Literature Review including Clinical, Toxicological, Pharmacogenomic, and Epigenetic Aspects for Forensic Evaluation. Children 2024, 11, 278. https://doi.org/10.3390/children11030278
Erin Kelty, Mishka Terplan, Carol Orr, David B. Preen, Neonatal Outcomes Associated With in Utero Exposure to Oxycodone, Overall and by Trimester of Exposure: A Retrospective Cohort Study, The Journal of Pain, Volume 24, Issue 4, 2023, Pages 617-626, ISSN 1526-5900,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpain.2022.11.007.
Pesonen A, Hakomäki H, Kokki H, Ranta VP, Rinne V, Kokki M. Breast milk oxycodone concentrations in mothers given oxycodone for post-Caesarean delivery pain management. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2024 Apr;90(4):1183-1192. doi: 10.1111/bcp.16008. Epub 2024 Feb 2. PMID: 38308454.
Hendrickson, R. G., & McKeown, N. J. (2011). Is maternal opioid use hazardous to breast-fed infants? Clinical Toxicology, 50(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3109/15563650.2011.635147
Further reading
Are benzos similar to opioids?
The dangers of cross-addiction
Is it possible to quit multiple addictions at once?
How does drug addiction progress?
Rational emotive behavioral therapy
