This sheet is about exposure to flurazepam in pregnancy and while breastfeeding. This information should not take the place of medical care and advice from your healthcare provider.
What is flurazepam?
Flurazepam is a medication that has been used to treat insomnia (having a hard time falling asleep or staying asleep). Flurazepam is in a class of medications called benzodiazepines. Flurazepam has been sold under the brand name Dalmane®.
Sometimes when people find out they are pregnant, they think about changing how they take their medication, or stopping their medication altogether. However, it is important to talk with your healthcare providers before making any changes to how you take this medication. Your healthcare providers can talk with you about the benefits of treating your condition and the risks of untreated illness during pregnancy.
Stopping flurazepam suddenly could cause withdrawal symptoms. It is not known if or how withdrawal might affect a pregnancy. It has been suggested that any reduction in flurazepam be done slowly, and under the direction of your healthcare provider.
I take flurazepam. Can it make it harder for me to get pregnant?
Studies have not looked at whether taking flurazepam could make it harder to get pregnant.
Does taking flurazepam increase the chance for miscarriage?
Miscarriage is common and can occur in any pregnancy for many different reasons. Studies have not been done to see if flurazepam could increase the chance for a miscarriage.
Does taking flurazepam increase the chance of having a baby with a birth defect?
Every pregnancy starts out with a 3-5% chance of having a birth defect. This is called the background risk. Flurazepam has not been studied in humans during pregnancy. Experimental animal studies did not find a higher chance for birth defects with exposure to flurazepam.
Does taking flurazepam in pregnancy increase the chance of other pregnancy-related problems?
Studies have not been done to see if flurazepam increases the chance for pregnancy-related problems such as preterm delivery (birth before week 37) or low birth weight (weighing less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces [2500 grams] at birth).
I need to take flurazepam throughout my entire pregnancy. Will it cause withdrawal symptoms in my baby after birth?
The use of flurazepam during pregnancy can cause temporary symptoms in newborns soon after birth. These symptoms are sometimes referred to as withdrawal. If flurazepam is used at the end of pregnancy, the baby can be monitored for “floppy infant syndrome” (poor muscle tone) and trouble feeding. Not all babies exposed to flurazepam will have these symptoms. It is important that your healthcare providers know you are taking flurazepam so that if symptoms occur your baby can get the care that is best for them.
Does taking flurazepam in pregnancy affect future behavior or learning for the child?
Studies have not been done to see if flurazepam can cause behavior or learning issues for the child.
Breastfeeding while taking flurazepam:
There are no studies on the use of flurazepam while breastfeeding. There is 1 case report on a person who was taking flurazepam and nursing their child. This breastfeeding person was also taking 3 other medications. They reported that their nursing infant was very sleepy. While flurazepam could cause drowsiness, it is not known if it was the flurazepam, the combination of medications, or other factors that caused the baby to be too sleepy. However, since flurazepam can stay in the body for a long time, talk with your healthcare provider to see if another, better studied medication would work for you while you are breastfeeding. If you suspect the baby has any symptoms (sedation, poor feeding, and poor weight gain), contact the child’s healthcare provider. Be sure to talk to your healthcare provider about all of your breastfeeding questions.
If a male takes flurazepam, could it affect fertility (ability to get partner pregnant) or increase the chance of birth defects in a partner’s pregnancy?
Studies have not been done to see if flurazepam could affect male fertility or increase the chance of birth defects. In general, exposures that fathers or sperm donors have are unlikely to increase risks to a pregnancy. For more information, please see the MotherToBaby fact sheet Paternal Exposures at https://mothertobaby.org/fact-sheets/paternal-exposures-pregnancy/.
The National Pregnancy Registry for Sedative-Hypnotics and Other Sleep Medications: There is a pregnancy registry for people who take sleep-aid medications, such as flurazepam. For more information you can look at their website: https://womensmentalhealth.org/research/pregnancyregistry/.
The North American Antiepileptic Drug (NAAED) Pregnancy Registry: There is also a pregnancy registry for people who take medications such as flurazepam. For more information you can look at their website: http://www.aedpregnancyregistry.org/.
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OTIS/MotherToBaby encourages inclusive and person-centered language. While our name still contains a reference to mothers, we are updating our resources with more inclusive terms. Use of the term mother or maternal refers to a person who is pregnant. Use of the term father or paternal refers to a person who contributes sperm.
