MotherToBaby

Medications and More during pregnancy and breastfeeding

866.626.6847

Tocilizumab (Actemra®)

Selected References:

  • Actemra Prescribing Information. Available online at https://www.gene.com/download/pdf/actemra_prescribing.pdf [Accessed Jan 2020].
  • Dalkilic E, et al. 2019. A successful pregnancy in a patient with Takayasu’s arteritis under tocilizumab treatment: A longitudinal case study. Int J Rheum Dis 22(10)L 1941-1944
  • Förger F & Villiger PM. 2016. Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis during pregnancy: present and future, Expert Rev of Clin Immun; 12(9):937-944.
  • Götestam Skorpen C, et al. 2016. The EULAR points to consider for use of antirheumatic drugs before pregnancy, and during pregnancy and lactation. Annals of the Rheum Dis; 75:795-810.
  • Hoeltzenbein M, et al. 2016. Tocilizumab use in pregnancy: analysis of a global safety database including data from clinical trials and post-marketing data. Sem Arthr Rheum; 466(2):238–45.
  • Hyrich KL and Verstappen SM. 2014. Biologic therapies and pregnancy: the story so far. Rheumatology (Oxford); 53(8):1377-85.
  • Jimenez-Lozano I, et al. 2021. Safety of tocilizumab in COVID-19 pregnant women and their newborn: A retrospective study. J Clin Pharm Ther 2021;46:1062-1070.
  • Jorgensen S & Lapinsky SE. 2021. Tocilizumab for coronavirus disease 2019 in pregnancy and lactation: a narrative review. Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, S1198-743X(21)00476-6.
  • Levy RA, et. al. 2016. Critical review of the current recommendations for the treatment of systemic inflammatory rheumatic diseases during pregnancy and lactation. Autoimmun Rev 15(10):955-63.
  • Kaneko K, et. al. 2016. Tocilizumab and pregnancy: Four cases of pregnancy in young women with rheumatoid arthritis refractory to anti-TNF biologics with exposure to tocilizumab. Mod Rheumtol ; 26(5):672-675.
  • Moriyama M, et al. 2020. Unexpectedly lower proportion of placental transferred tocilizumab relative to whole immunoglobulin G: a case report. Scand J Rheumatol. 49(2):165-166.
  • Nakajima K, et. al. 2016. Pregnancy outcomes after exposure to tocilizumab: A retrospective analysis of 61 patients in Japan. Mod Rheumtol; 26(5):667-671.
  • NIH (July 8 2021). COVID-19 treatment guidelines: Special considerations in pregnancy. https://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/special-populations/pregnancy/
  • Ostensen M and Förger F. 2011. Treatment with biologics of pregnant patients with rheumatic diseases. Curr Opin Rheumatol; 23(3):293-8.
  • Pham T, et al. 2010.Tocilizumab: therapy and safety management. Joint Bone Spine; 77 Suppl 1:S3-100.
  • Rubbert-Roth A, et al. 2010. First experiences with pregnancies in RA patients receiving tocilizumab therapy. [abstract]. Arthritis Rheum; 62 Suppl 10:384.
  • Saito J et. al. Tocilizumab during pregnancy and lactation: drug levels in maternal serum, cord blood, breast milk and infant serum. Rheumatology (Oxford). 58(8):1505-1507.
  • Weber-Schoendorfer C and Schaefer C. 2016. Pregnancy outcome after tocilizumab therapy in early pregnancy-a case series from the German Embryotox Pharmacovigilance Center. Reprod Toxicology. 60:29–32.