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Review
. 2010 Jun;10(6):943-59.
doi: 10.1586/ern.10.57.

Teratogenic effects of antiepileptic drugs

Denise S Hill  1 , Bogdan J Wlodarczyk, Ana M Palacios, Richard H Finnell
Affiliations
Review

Teratogenic effects of antiepileptic drugs

Denise S Hill et al. Expert Rev Neurother. 2010 Jun.

Abstract

Many antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) have therapeutic applications that extend beyond epilepsy to include neuropathic pain, migraine headaches and psychiatric disorders. The risk of some AEDs has been clearly established, but for newer drugs, small sample sizes and polytherapy exposures preclude a conclusive determination of their teratogenic potential. Most women with epilepsy will require AED therapy throughout their entire pregnancy to control seizures; the vast majority of pregnancies in women with epilepsy have positive outcomes. A conservative estimate suggests that AED monotherapy doubles, and polytherapy triples, the risk for major congenital malformations. Furthermore, while evidence is still accruing, recent investigations suggest that exposure to select AEDs results in altered cognitive function later in development. There is no evidence to suggest that additional folic acid supplementation ameliorates the increased risk of congenital malformations conferred by in utero AED exposure.

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References

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Websites

    1. Toxicology data network http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov

    1. The North American Antiepileptic Drug Pregnancy Registry 2009 Winter Report (2009) www.aedpregnancyregistry.org

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