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 fecund fared worse in set than peers with no prenatal aspect to those medications, a massive Swedish study has found. Also, teens born to epileptic mothers in non-exclusive tended to score lower in several subjects, including math and English large girth cocks. The findings be supportive earlier research that linked prenatal airing to epilepsy drugs, particularly valproic acid (brand names include Depakene and Depakote), to disputing effects on a child's ability to process information, solve problems and make decisions.

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

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

The researchers identified 1,235 children born to epileptic mothers. Of those, 641 children were exposed to one anti-epileptic medicine and 429 to two or more; 165 children had no known unveiling to the medications. The researchers then compared those children's school exhibition 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 treat in the womb were less likely to get a final grade than those in the general population, said Forsberg. Not receiving a absolute 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 no doubt 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, sociable factors and the effect of the mother's seizures, said Forsberg. "Therefore, these figures 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 library noted that compared to other anti-epileptic drugs, valproic acid during pregnancy seems to have a stronger cold influence on cognitive skills. However, Forsberg said that this observe could not draw specific conclusions about valproic acid, since very few of the children premeditated 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 upsetting medications other than valproic acid.

Dr Jacqueline A French, professor of neurology at NYU Langone Medical Center and chief of the Clinical Trials Consortium at the NYU Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, said that the retrospective mould of the reading made it difficult to control for unknowns that could have affected its findings. For example, the on 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 deliberate 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 good chance 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 absolute school, and that most children of epileptic mothers are born and tarry 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 contemplate their pregnancies smokedeter. "That way, they and their doctors can come up with individual treatment plans that be suitable for the pregnancy safe for both mother and child".