The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday announced plans to tighten controls over the use of medicine containing valproate among pregnant women and women of childbearing age.
Valproate is a treatment for epilepsy, bipolar disorder and can prevent migraines, but studies show that for women who take it during pregnancy, there is significant risk of defects and developmental disorders to their children.
The FDA in 2013 prohibited doctors from prescribing valproate to pregnant women as migraine prophylaxis, and when they are prescribed to pregnant women to treat other conditions because there is no alternative, they should be warned about the risk of their child being born with congenital abnormalities or disorders.
FDA Medicinal Products Division section chief Hung Kuo-teng (洪國登) said that as several countries endorsed more stringent regulatory controls of valproate medicine, the FDA’s drug safety and evaluation advisory group discussed the issue and concluded that Taiwan should follow suit.
From yesterday, doctors are banned from prescribing valproate to pregnant women to treat bipolar disorder; are barred from using it to treat epilepsy in pregnant women unless there is no alternative; and are banned from using it to treat epilepsy or bipolar disorder in women of childbearing age unless they are using reliable contraception methods, Hung said.
Doctors should evaluate the possibility of pregnancy in female patients of childbearing age, and fully explain the risks of birth defects and other risks to the fetus if valproate is taken during pregnancy before they prescribe the drug, the FDA said.
Women who are taking valproate when they become pregnant should consult a doctor immediately, it said.
If people suspect an adverse reaction to drugs, it can be reported to the FDA’s hotline on (02) 2396-0100, it said.
US climber Alex Honnold is to attempt to scale Taipei 101 without a rope and harness in a live Netflix special on Jan. 24, the streaming platform announced on Wednesday. Accounting for the time difference, the two-hour broadcast of Honnold’s climb, called Skyscraper Live, is to air on Jan. 23 in the US, Netflix said in a statement. Honnold, 40, was the first person ever to free solo climb the 900m El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park — a feat that was recorded and later made into the 2018 documentary film Free Solo. Netflix previewed Skyscraper Live in October, after videos
Starting on Jan. 1, YouBike riders must have insurance to use the service, and a six-month trial of NT$5 coupons under certain conditions would be implemented to balance bike shortages, a joint statement from transportation departments across Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan announced yesterday. The rental bike system operator said that coupons would be offered to riders to rent bikes from full stations, for riders who take out an electric-assisted bike from a full station, and for riders who return a bike to an empty station. All riders with YouBike accounts are automatically eligible for the program, and each membership account
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
RSS