Youngsters born to moms who take antiseizure drugs to handle seizures and psychiatric situations throughout being pregnant could face elevated dangers of neurodevelopmental situations, based on new knowledge from researchers at Drexel’s Dornsife Faculty of Public Well being.
The present work — utilizing knowledge from greater than three million youngsters from the UK and Sweden, together with 17,495 who have been uncovered to antiseizure drugs throughout being pregnant — discovered that youngsters uncovered to the antiseizure drug lamotrigine in utero have been at no extra threat for autism or mental incapacity in contrast with these uncovered to different antiseizure drugs. Nevertheless, youngsters uncovered to valproate, topiramate, and carbamazepine have been linked to particular neurodevelopmental points. The findings have been printed this month within the journal Nature Communications.
Nevertheless, absolutely the threat of neurodevelopmental outcomes in offspring is low, the researchers warning, no matter antiseizure drug routine. In comparison with youngsters unexposed to antiseizure drugs, these uncovered to the drug topiramate throughout being pregnant have been 2.5 instances extra prone to be identified with mental incapacity, which raises their threat to 2.1% by age 12. As compared with different medication obtainable, the authors discovered little or no knowledge suggesting that the drug lamotrigine in being pregnant will increase the danger of neurodevelopmental points in offspring.
Our findings recommend that whereas sure drugs could pose some threat, lamotrigine could also be a much less dangerous choice. Lively monitoring of any antiseizure treatment is important to make sure security and effectiveness, notably throughout being pregnant.”
Brian Ok. Lee, PhD, co-senior creator, professor, Dornsife Faculty of Public Well being
This examine contrasts earlier research in that it didn’t discover a statistically vital hyperlink between topiramate or levetiracetam and ADHD in youngsters, no matter whether or not the birthing guardian had an epilepsy analysis.
In keeping with the researchers, the information doesn’t argue towards use of antiseizure drugs in sufferers who profit, however slightly encourages these sufferers to have a dialog with their physician to find out if their course of remedy is most applicable for them.
“Selections must be made which are tailor-made to particular person sufferers,” mentioned co-lead creator Paul Madley-Dowd, PhD, a analysis fellow on the College of Bristol. “Stopping antiseizure drugs may cause particular person hurt and hurt to offspring, so these conversations all the time have to occur with a clinician.”
This examine helps findings from earlier analysis that hyperlink the antiseizure medication valproate, topiramate, and carbamazepine with neurodevelopmental diagnoses in offspring, akin to autism, mental incapacity and ADHD. Earlier research in smaller populations additionally hyperlink in utero publicity of those medication with neurodevelopmental outcomes in offspring, akin to ones linking topiramate and mental incapacity, and people associating valproate and decrease IQ.
The examine utilized knowledge on drug prescriptions in the UK, and dispensation and self-reported knowledge on drug use in Sweden, in addition to digital well being information knowledge for diagnoses. The authors performed a sibling evaluation to assist decrease the affect of different components, akin to severity of analysis and underlying genetics, that will affect the outcomes.
“The hyperlink between these medication and kids’s neurodevelopmental outcomes is there, even when the danger is not a lot greater than it’s within the unexposed inhabitants,” mentioned co-lead creator Viktor H. Ahlqvist, a postdoctoral researcher at Karolinska Institutet. “If you happen to’re pregnant or making an attempt to develop into pregnant, and taking certainly one of these drugs, it might be value speaking together with your doctor to be sure to’re taking one of the best medication to your wants, whereas minimizing threat to future youngsters.”
Regardless of the examine’s massive pattern dimension, the authors say sufferers may gain advantage from additional analysis from a number of international locations on security of those medication because the panorama of choices obtainable to sufferers adjustments.
Along with Lee, Madley-Dowd and Ahlqvist, different authors included co-senior authors Cecilia Magnusson from the Karolinska Institutet and Dheeraj Rai from the College of Bristol, and collaborators from Drexel College, Pennylvania State College, London Faculty of Hygiene and Tropical Drugs, College Faculty London, College of Bristol, and the Karolinska Institutet.
The examine was funded by the Nationwide Institutes of Well being (1R01NS107607).
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Journal reference:
Madley-Dowd, P., et al. (2024). Antiseizure treatment use throughout being pregnant and kids’s neurodevelopmental outcomes. Nature Communications. doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-53813-1.
