A prospective study in a southern Indian hospital on the prescription of medication during the lying in period following childbirth.

The awareness of the inherent risks attached to medication use during pregnancy is increasing. There is, however, a paucity of available following childbirth. We have conducted a prospective study in women who gave birth in hospital with the objective of analysing the use of medication in this lying in period. The results show that, in addition to the vitamins and minerals routinely prescribed for every young mother and the antipyretics administered as required, the following medicaments were most often used: analgesics (by approx. 9%), anti-inflammatory agents (49%) and antibiotics (38%). The antibiotics were either used prophylactically or, in cases of proven infection, administered therapeutically. The use of antibiotics appears more intensive compared to western countries, presumably due to the greater risk of infection in this group in India. On the other hand, the use of sleep inducing medication and tranquillizers during the lying in period appears, in comparison to other studies, almost negligible. The majority of the women were unaware of the potential side-effects of medication during breastfeeding.