NVP Counselor
Date: 2004-09-23

Question:
Our doctor told us to take Unisom and B6. What are the side effects to this medcine while pregnant? We are 10 weeks along and she is sick everyday. The doctor also prescribed Zofran, what are the side effects for this? Tks,

Answer:
Unisom and Vitamin B6, the two components of Diclectin, the medication used in Canada for the treatment of NVP, have been used for over 40 years. They are the first, safe, recommended line of treatment. How to take B6/Unisom in countries where Diclectin is not available, is described in previous Questions and Answers in this Forum. If this treatment is not effective, (possibly because it was not started at the onset of symptoms while they were still mild), other treatments are listed in our treatment algorithm.

Zofran came to our attention about 6 years ago. Until our Motherisk study, published this month in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, only 15 cases had been followed after birth. Our study of 176 women who called our Helpline showed 6 babies born with birth defects. Three of those were cases of hypospadias - not severe and common in that it affects 1 out of 3 male babies. These statistics (6 out of 176) fall within the 1 percent to 3 percent baseline risk for birth defect present in any pregnancy.