Klin Farmakol Farm. 2007;21(2):54-58

Adverse effects of antiepileptic therapy in children and adolescents with epilepsy - retrospective analysis

Ĺubomír Virág², Magdaléna Kuželová¹, Lívia Magulová^3,2, Miroslav Murgaš⁴

¹ Katedra farmakológie a toxikológie, Farmaceutická fakulta UK, Bratislava

² Oddelenie klinickej farmakológie, Fakultná nemocnica Nitra, Nitra

³ II. interná klinika, Fakultná nemocnica, Nitra

⁴ Neštátna detská neurologická ambulancia, Nitra

Anticonvulsants are drugs for a longtime therapy, therefore their possible adverse effects require more attention. The aim of study was to obtain data about adverse effects and overall risk of antiepileptic therapy in paediatric patients with epilepsy.

Methods: We analyse the adverse effects of antiepileptic drugs used by paediatric patients, who were treated in private paediatric neurological practice in Nitra during 10 years time (1994–2004). Over this period, there were 219 patients treated with the diagnosis of epilepsy in this ambulance. Medical records of these patients have provided the source of data.

Results: One hundred sixteen (53 %) patients were treated by monotherapy. Valproate was the most often used antiepileptic drug. Adverse effects of anticonvulsants were presented at almost 30 % of patients. Most of the adverse reactions had less serious character and developed after the treatment with both valproate and carbamazepine. The most frequent adverse effects were gastrointestinal problems (39 %), central nervous system problems (37 %), skin eruptions (14 %) and malfunction of haemopoiesis (9 %). Serious (idiosyncratic) adverse effects (acute pancreatitis after valproate therapy, toxoallergic exanthema after carbamazepine, exocentric constriction of visual field after vigabatrine) were reported to the National monitoring centre for the adverse reactions of drugs in Bratislava.

Conclusion: Our results point out on the fact that the therapy by classic antiepileptics (phenytoin, valproate and carbamazepine) is connected by relatively frequent incidence of the adverse reactions. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor actively anamnestic, clinical and laboratory warning manifestation of possible adverse reaction.

Keywords: epilepsy, children, anticonvulsants, adverse effects

Published: October 1, 2007  Show citation