Q: For pregnant women with acute pericarditis, after what age of gestation Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) should be avoided and glucocorticoids should be considered?


Answer:  20 weeks

NSAIDs can be used for pregnant women with acute pericarditis who are less than 20 weeks of gestation. But beyond that NSAIDs should be avoided and glucocorticoids should be considered as a first line of therapy. After gestational week 20, NSAIDs may cause constriction of the ductus arteriosus and impair fetal renal function.


Reference:

Adler Y, Charron P, Imazio M, et al. 2015 ESC Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of pericardial diseases: The Task Force for the Diagnosis and Management of Pericardial Diseases of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC)Endorsed by: The European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS). Eur Heart J 2015; 36:2921.