Conception and pregnancy: FDA determinations
The following table shows FDA-approved psoriasis treatments and their category for use by pregnant and nursing women.
| Generic name | Brand name | FDA category | Comments |
| Acitretin | Soriatane | X | Causes birth defects. Absolutely avoid. |
| Adalimumab | Humira | B | Long-term animal studies showed no harm. No human studies conducted. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Alefacept | Amevive | B | Long-term animal studies showed no harm. No human studies conducted. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Anthralin | | C | No clear evidence of birth defects. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Calcipotriene | Dovonex | C | No clear evidence of birth defects. Avoid unless necessary. |
Calcipotriene
and
betamethasone
dipropionate | Taclonex | C | No clear evidence of birth defects. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Calcitriol | Vectical ointment | C | No clear evidence of birth defects. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Cyclosporine | | C | No clear evidence of birth defects. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Efalizumab | Raptiva | C | No clear evidence of birth defects. Avoid unless necessary. On April 8, 2009, Genentech, Inc. announced a voluntary withdrawal of Raptiva from the U.S. Market, this drug is no longer available. Please contact your dermatologist for further information. |
| Etanercept | Enbrel | B | Long-term animal studies showed no harm. No human studies conducted. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Infliximab | Remicade | B | Long-term animal studies showed no harm. No human studies conducted. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Methotrexate | | X | Even small doses can cause defects in first trimester. Absolutely avoid. |
| PUVA | | C | No clear evidence of birth defects, although PUVA affects DNA. Avoid unless necessary. |
| Tazarotene | Tazorac | X | Risk of internal absorption. Absolutely avoid. |
| Topical steroids | | C | No clear evidence of birth defects. Avoid unless necessary. |
| UVB | | — | Safe during pregnancy. May cause skin discoloration. |
Key to FDA categories |
| B | Studies with animals have not found risk to the fetus but no studies have been done in humans. |
| C | Safety is not substantiated by animal or human studies. |
| X | Risk in pregnancy outweighs any benefits |