**Overview of Contraindicated Chinese Medicines for Pregnancy Overview of Contraindicated Chinese Medicines for Pregnancy**

Lu Li, Ling Shan Han, Xue Lu Jiang, Ping Chung Leung and Chi Chiu Wang Chung Leung and Chi Chiu Wang Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Lu Li, Ling Shan Han, Xue Lu Jiang, Ping

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/67066

#### **Abstract**

Chinese medicines should be classified into drugs, which have both beneficial and harmful effects. For centuries, Chinese medicines have been widely used to relieve many symptoms and to treat complications during pregnancy. It is not clear how safe the Chinese medicines are being used during pregnancy and if there is any adverse effects to embryofetal development and prenatal and postnatal growth. Some Chinese medicines are indicated that they cannot be used in pregnancy. In this chapter, we will conduct a systematic review to summarize and characterize in details the Chinese medicines classified as contraindicated, not recommended and cautiously used for pregnancy in most updated version of Pharmacopeia of the People's Republic of China. Clinical reports including clinical trials, case reports, case series and animal studies including short-term and long-term toxicity, specific organ toxicity and different species of the Chinese medicines will be studied. Unlike those pharmaceutical drugs not recommend for use during pregnancy because of known or suspected adverse or teratogenic effects evident by animal studies and/or clinical trials, most of the Chinese medicines were utilized for long history in culture which, however, has very limited scientific data regarding the adverse pregnant outcomes.

**Keywords:** Chinese medicines, pregnancy, safety, review
