Epilepsy drug ‘benefits mothers and babies’
Pregnant women with epilepsy could benefit from a popular drug designed to reduce seizures while minimising birth defects.
Researchers at Emory University in the US found that lamotrigine can improve the overall health of expectant mothers and their unborn babies.
For the purposes of the study, 53 women taking lamotrigine underwent therapeutic drug monitoring throughout their pregnancies.
Although previous work had suggested that the treatment caused seizures to worsen, this latest experiment revealed that strict monitoring of the drug can actually lead to a reduction.
"Our findings provide a foundation for treatment guidelines to prevent increased seizure frequency and ultimately improve the health of the mother and foetus," confirmed Dr Page Pennell, director of the Emory Epilepsy Programme.
"This is important data considering current treatment guidelines do not address how to dose epilepsy drugs once women become pregnant; it’s really a benefit for both mothers and babies," she added.
Published in the online edition of Neurology, the latest findings mark the success of doctors specially trained to manage disorders of the brain and nervous system such as stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis, as well as epilepsy.
The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with epilepsy
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