abstract
- To examine information sources about the safety of medications during pregnancy among predominantly Latina pregnant women.Consecutively chosen pregnant women (n = 404) attending the University of New Mexico clinics were offered participation and interviewed by a bilingual interviewer.Patient-initiated questions about the safety of medications in pregnancy were addressed most frequently to prenatal care providers (62.1%) and family members (25.2%). The Internet, books and clinic pamphlets/brochures were the most frequent self-identified sources of information. Among the 181 women with medical conditions (44.8%), education, marital status and parity were important predictors of information-seeking behavior. Specifically, women with higher education were 3.0 times (95% CI 1.2-7.5) more likely to seek advice than women with less than a high school education. Single (OR = 0.3; 95% CI 0.1-0.7) and multiparous (OR = 0.4; 95% CI 0.1-0.9) women were less likely to seek advice than married and nulliparous patients, respectively.Prenatal care providers need to more actively engage pregnant women in a decision-making process and discuss risks and benefits of medication management during pregnancy.