Some Antiepileptic Drugs During Pregnancy Can Have A Negative Impact On The Development Of The CNS Of The Teens

Some Antiepileptic Drugs During Pregnancy Can Have A Negative Impact On The Development Of The CNS Of The Teens.
Teens born to women who took two or more epilepsy drugs while club fared worse in sect than peers with no prenatal outlook to those medications, a extensive Swedish study has found. Also, teens born to epileptic mothers in inclusive tended to score lower in several subjects, including math and English. The findings stand by earlier research that linked prenatal endangerment to epilepsy drugs, particularly valproic acid (brand names include Depakene and Depakote), to anti effects on a child's ability to process information, solve problems and make decisions.

And "Our results suggest that imperilment to several anti-epileptic drugs in utero may have a negative effect on a child's neurodevelopment," said about author Dr Lisa Forsberg of Karolinska University Hospital. The mug up was published online Nov 4, 2010 in Epilepsia.

The study was retrospective, substance that it looked backwards in time. Using national medical records and a study conducted by a resident hospital, Forsberg and her team identified women with epilepsy who gave birth between 1973 and 1986, as well as those who cast-off anti-epileptic drugs during pregnancy. The team then obtained records of children's school play from a registry that provides grades for all students leaving school at 16, the age that mandatory schooling ends in Sweden.

The researchers identified 1,235 children born to epileptic mothers. Of those, 641 children were exposed to one anti-epileptic sedative and 429 to two or more; 165 children had no known peril to the medications. The researchers then compared those children's school doing to that of all other children born in Sweden (more than 1,3 million) during that 13-year period.

The teens exposed to more than one anti-epileptic medicament in the womb were less likely to get a final grade than those in the general population, said Forsberg. Not receiving a ultimate grade generally means not attending general school because of mental deficits.

While teens exposed to only one anti-seizure medication did not show the same risk, they were less able to pass with excellence. This may be the issue of the influence of the anti-epileptic drug during fetal life, but it may also be the effect of factors related to epilepsy, such as genetic factors, sexual factors and the effect of the mother's seizures, said Forsberg. "Therefore, these observations should be interpreted with caution".

Anti-epileptic medications besides valproic acid include phenytoin (such as Dilantin and Phenytek) and carbamazepine (such as Tegretol and Carbatrol). The examine noted that compared to other anti-epileptic drugs, valproic acid during pregnancy seems to have a stronger negating influence on cognitive skills. However, Forsberg said that this bookwork could not draw specific conclusions about valproic acid, since very few of the children calculated were exposed to it.

There's also evidence that taking multiple anti-epileptic drugs can cause more harm than taking just one. That's why the American Academy of Neurology recommends taking just one during pregnancy, if possible, and maddening medications other than valproic acid.

Dr Jacqueline A French, professor of neurology at NYU Langone Medical Center and vice-president of the Clinical Trials Consortium at the NYU Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, said that the retrospective temperament of the consider made it difficult to control for unknowns that could have affected its findings. For example, the swotting could not factor in how often the mothers had seizures during their pregnancies or during critical early years of the child's life.

So "I contemplate that could have an impact on the child's development. We can't exclude the possibility that a woman on anti-epileptic drugs whose seizures are well controlled has just as much distinct possibility of having a child that excels as a woman who is not on the drugs".

Forsberg agreed, noting that most children exposed to anti-epileptic drugs do end school, and that most children of epileptic mothers are born and last healthy. However, the study findings support current recommendations that expecting women take just one anti-epileptic drug if possible, noted Forsberg. She also recommended that women with epilepsy layout their pregnancies recommended site. "That way, they and their doctors can come up with individual treatment plans that provoke the pregnancy safe for both mother and child".