Lack of Constrictive Effects of Cocaine on the Fetal Ductus Arteriosus in the Rat

Cocaine (12.5 or 25 mg/kg) was administered intraperitoneally to pregnant rats 15 min to 12 hr prior to Caesarean section on day 20 of gestation. The fetuses were immediately frozen and serially sectioned, and the diameter of their ductus arteriosus (DA) was calibrated. The DA was patent in all the fetuses examined and the DA caliber was not significantly different between the control and the cocaine-treated groups at any time interval after the cocaine dosing. It was concluded that cocaine has no constrictive effects on the fetal DA in the rat.