This sheet talks about exposure to pheniramine in pregnancy and while breastfeeding. This information should not take the place of medical care and advice from your healthcare provider.

What is pheniramine?

Pheniramine is an antihistamine approved to treat allergy symptoms such as stuffy nose and swollen eyes. It has also been used to treat dermatitis (inflammation of the skin). Pheniramine is might be listed as pheniramine maleate on medication labels. Pheniramine can be found in over-the-counter multi-symptom medications.

I take pheniramine. Can it make it harder for me to get pregnant?

Studies have not been done to see if pheniramine could make it harder for a woman to get pregnant.

I just found out I am pregnant. Should I stop taking pheniramine?

Talk with your healthcare providers before making any changes to how you take this medication.

Does taking pheniramine maleate increase the chance for miscarriage? 

Miscarriage can occur in any pregnancy. Studies have not been done to see if pheniramine increases the chance for a miscarriage.

Does taking pheniramine in the first trimester increase the chance of birth defects?

In every pregnancy, a woman starts out with a 3-5% chance of having a baby with a birth defect. This is called her background risk. Pheniramine has not been well studied for use during a pregnancy, therefore it is unknown if pheniramine maleate would increase the chance of a birth defect above the background risk.

Could taking pheniramine in the second or third trimester cause other pregnancy complications?

Pheniramine has not been well studied for use during a pregnancy, therefore it is unknown if pheniramine would increase the chance of other pregnancy complications.

Does taking pheniramine in pregnancy cause long-term problems in behavior or learning for the baby?

Studies have not been done to see if pheniramine causes long-term problems in behavior or learning.

Can I breastfeed while taking pheniramine maleate?

Pheniramine has not been studied for use during breastfeeding. Be sure to talk to your healthcare provider about all your breastfeeding questions.

If a man takes pheniramine, could it affect his fertility (ability to get partner pregnant) or increase the chance of birth defects? 

In general, exposures that fathers 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/pdf/.

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