40: Are peripartum opioids safe for breastfeeding mothers?

Dr. Gopika Hari and Dr. Lana Joudeh join the podcast to discuss the literature on the safety of peripartum opioid use and its implications for breastfeeding.

Dr. Hari is an anesthesia resident in the MGH Anesthesia Residency Program and a graduate of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Dr. Joudeh completed her anesthesia residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and is currently a faculty member. This episode was produced as part of the Depth of Anesthesia podcast elective.

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Music by Stephen Campbell, MD.

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References

​American Society of Anesthesiologists. Statement on Resuming Breastfeeding after Anesthesia. Amended October 23, 2024. Available at: https://www.asahq.org/standards-and-practice-parameters/statement-on-resuming-breastfeeding-after-anesthesia. Accessed April 6, 2025.

Mitchell J, Jones W, Winkley E, Kinsella SM. Guideline on anaesthesia and sedation in breastfeeding women 2020: Guideline from the Association of Anaesthetists. Anaesthesia. 2020 Nov;75(11):1482-1493. doi: 10.1111/anae.15179. Epub 2020 Aug 1. PMID: 32737881.

Pharmacologic Stepwise Multimodal Approach for Postpartum Pain Management: ACOG Clinical Consensus No. 1. Obstet Gynecol. 2021 Sep 1;138(3):507-517. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000004517. PMID: 34412076.

Robieux I, Koren G, Vandenbergh H, Schneiderman J. Morphine excretion in breast milk and resultant exposure of a nursing infant. J Toxicol Clin Toxicol. 1990;28(3):365-70. doi: 10.3109/15563659008994437. PMID: 2231835.

Baka, N.-E., Bayou Menu, F., Boutroy, M.-J., & Laxenaire, M.-C. (2002). Colostrum morphine concentrations during Postcesarean intravenous patient-controlled analgesia. Anesthesia & Analgesia, 94(1), 184–187. https://doi.org/10.1213/00000539-200201000-00035

Wittels B, Glosten B, Faure EA, et al. Postcesarean analgesia with both epidural morphine and intravenous patient-controlled analgesia: neurobehavioral outcomes among nursing neonates. Anesth Analg. 1997;85(3):600-606.

Lam J, Kelly L, Ciszkowski C, et al. Central nervous system depression of neonates breastfed by mothers receiving oxycodone for postpartum analgesia. J Pediatr. 2012;160(1):33-37.e2.

Seaton, S., Reeves, M., & McLean, S. (2007). Oxycodone as a component of multimodal analgesia for lactating mothers after Cesarean section: relationships between maternal plasma, breast milk and neonatal plasma levels. The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynecology, 47(3), 181–185. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1479-828X.2007.00715.x

Edwards, J. E., Rudy, A. C., Wermeling, D. P., Desai, N., & McNamara, P. J. (2003). Hydromorphone Transfer into Breast Milk After Intranasal Administration. Pharmacotherapy, 23(2), 153–158. https://doi.org/10.1592/phco.23.2.153.32081

Oommen, H., Oddbjørn Tveit, T., Eskedal, L. T., Myr, R., Swanson, D. M., & Vistad, I. (2021). The association between intrapartum opioid fentanyl and early breastfeeding: A prospective observational study. Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica, 100(12), 2294–2302. https://doi.org/10.1111/aogs.14268

Goma, H. M., Said, R. N., & El-Ela, A. M. (2008). Study o