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Seizure Medications and Teratogenicity

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Controversies in Caring for Women with Epilepsy

Abstract

A 23-year-old woman has medically refractory focal epilepsy with and without secondary generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Her seizures have been controlled in the past 2 years on a combination of topiramate 200 mg twice daily and levetiracetam 1500 mg twice daily. Previous attempts to lower or simplify her medication regimen resulted in seizure recurrence. She has tried oxcarbazepine and lamotrigine in the past with no success. During her visit, she brings up the fact that she desires to become pregnant and start a family. How do you counsel the patient regarding the risks for teratogenicity of her seizure medications and what do you advise her to do?

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Correspondence to M. Sazgar M.D. .

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Friedman, D.E., Tomson, T., Sazgar, M. (2016). Seizure Medications and Teratogenicity. In: Sazgar, M., Harden, C. (eds) Controversies in Caring for Women with Epilepsy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29170-3_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29170-3_7

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