title: Excretion of cefprozil into human breast milk.
abstract: The excretion of cefprozil into breast milk in nine healthy, lactating female subjects was investigated. Each subject received a single 1,000-mg oral dose of cefprozil consisting of cis and trans isomers in an approximately 90:10 ratio. Serial blood, urine, and breast milk samples were collected and analyzed for the concentrations of the cis and trans isomers by a specific high-pressure liquid chromatography-UV assay. The mean pharmacokinetic parameters for both isomers were essentially the same. The mean peak concentrations in plasma for the cis isomer were 14.8 micrograms/ml, and the area under the concentration curve was 54.8 micrograms.h/ml. The mean values of elimination half-life, renal clearance, and urinary excretion for the cis isomer were 1.69 h, 164 ml/min, and 60%, respectively. The mean concentrations in milk of the cis isomer over a 24-h period ranged from 0.25 to 3.36 micrograms/ml, with the maximum concentration appearing at 6 h after dosing. The average maximum concentration in milk of the trans isomer was less than 0.26 micrograms/ml. The concentrations of the trans isomer in plasma and in breast milk were about 1/10 of those for the cis isomer. Less than 0.3% of the dose was excreted in breast milk for both isomers of cefprozil. Even if one assumes that the concentration of cefprozil in milk remains constant at 3.36 micrograms/ml (the highest concentration of cefprozil observed in breast milk), an infant ingesting an average of 800 ml of milk per day will be exposed to a maximum amount of about 3 mg of cefprozil per day. This value represents about 0.3% of the maternal dose. Low excretion of cefprozil in breast milk and the excellent safety profile of cefprozil suggest that this cephalosporin may be administered to nursing mothers when indicated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Research Institute, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Syracuse, New York 13221-4755.
authors.forename: W C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Shyu
authors.forename: V R
authors.initials: VR
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Venitz
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Jaganathan
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Pittman
authors.forename: R B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Wilber
authors.forename: R H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Barbhaiya
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D002511:Cephalosporins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000032:analysis / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D000097670:Cefprozil
chemical_list: D002511:Cephalosporins; D000097670:Cefprozil