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teratology and teratogenesis will mean the study of (-ology) and induction (-genesis)
of birth defects which are observable at birth (congenital) or at a later time. Birth
defects are usually thought of as structural or anatomical defects but may also include
physiological, functional or behavioral defects as well. Drug induced teratology refer
to birth defects caused by exposure to drugs.
Teratology and teratogenesis both contain the stem, "terat-" which comes from the
Greek word for monstrosity, "teras". A teratogen is a substance that induces a
structural malformation, a metabolic or physiological dysfunction or a behavioral
alteration or deficit in the offspring of an individual who has been challenged with
the teratogen.
6. What is the impact on fetal development when some of drugs administered late in
gestation?
Defect
Cyclopia
23 days
Anencephaly
26 days
Cleft lip
36 days
Syndactyly
6 weeks
Cleft Palate
8-9 weeks
Bicornate Uterus
10 weeks
Cryptorchidism
7-9 months
7. Why should pregnant women always be very careful when they take a drug, even
though all the drugs approved by FDA went through rigorous testing?
It needs to be remembered that the embryo will be more susceptible to deleterious compounds
than will the mother. Thus, a dosage, which has no noticeable effect on the mother, may have
severe effects on the developing fetus. Obviously, at dosages high enough to imperil or have an
effect on the mother the fetus will be at extreme risk.
8. How can different administration routes (intravenous, oral, etc.) of a drug affect the
teratogenicity?
These results may be due to differences in absorption from different sites,
differences in the rate of release from different tissue or differences in the metabolic
fate of the substance with differences in the nature of the metabolites released. The
infamous drug, thalidomide which caused thousands of children in Europe
and Japan to have serious limb deformities, was active when given orally but if it
was injected interperitoneally, no defects were seen.