Paroxetine Breastfeeding Warnings

Paroxetine has been reported to be excreted into human milk. There are no data on adverse effects in the nursing infant. The manufacturer recommends caution when administering paroxetine to nursing women.

One study involving 23 breast-feeding mothers on paroxetine found detectable levels of paroxetine present in all maternal samples and in 24 of 25 breast milk samples. However, in all of the infant serum samples, the paroxetine concentrations were below the lower limit of quantification. Furthermore, no unusual effects were reported in any of the infants. Another study has reported that the relative dose to a suckling infant for paroxetine is lower than that reported for fluoxetine or citalopram and higher than that reported for sertraline or fluvoxamine. One case study has reported breast milk levels of paroxetine to be nondetectable over a 24 hour collection, including foremilk and hindmilk samples, and the infant's serum level of paroxetine was also reported as nondetectable.