Use Of Medicines For Epilepsy During Pregnancy Can Cause A Risk To The Child

Use Of Medicines For Epilepsy During Pregnancy Can Cause A Risk To The Child.
Pregnant women with epilepsy who are taking carbamazepine (Tegretol) to guidance seizures may be at a minor extent increased endanger of having an infant with spina bifida, a restored study finds. Spina bifida is a condition in which the bones of the spine do not close but the spinal twine remains in place, usually with skin covering the defect health supplement for women. Most children will need lifelong remedying for problems arising from damage to the spinal cord and spinal nerves.

And "For women with epilepsy, annexation control during pregnancy is very important," said lead researcher Lolkje de Jong-van den Berg, from the disunity of pharmacy at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. "Our mull over can help in decisions regarding whether carbamazepine should be the drug of choice in pregnancy" perkosa. However, the best option with reference to treatment can be chosen only on an individual basis by the woman and her neurologist before pregnancy, weighing the benefits of epilepsy dominance against the risk of birth defects, de Jong-van den Berg said.

The record is published in the Dec 3, 2010 online edition of the BMJ. For the study, de Jong-van den Berg's span reviewed existing research to determine the risk of line defects among women taking Tegretol. The researchers found that infants of women taking Tegretol were 2,6 times more appropriate to have spina bifida, compared with women not taking any anti-epileptic medication.

However, the risk associated with Tegretol was less than with another anti-epileptic drug- valproic acid (Depakene). In fact, Tegretol was less chancy than valproic acid when it came to other nativity defects such as hypospadias, where a boy's urinary opening develops in the undesirable part of the penis or in the scrotum. "Carbamazepine is specifically related to an increased risk of spina bifida," de Jong-van den Berg said. "But you have to put in mind that the absolute gamble is small".