ReviewEpilepsia2008
Antiepileptic drugs during pregnancy: what is known and which AEDs seem to be safest?
Review in Epilepsia, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 100 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pregnancy-Associated Changes in Pharmacokinetics: A Systematic Review.PLoS medicine · 2016Pooled it
- Trial
- Pregnancy outcomes and changes to seizure frequency during pregnancy for patients with functional seizures.Epilepsy & behavior : E&B · 2025Article
- Perceptions of reproductive risk among women with epilepsy of childbearing age.Epilepsy & behavior : E&B · 2024Article
- Seizure control during pregnancy and postpartum period in women with epilepsy: an Egyptian prospective study.BMC neurology · 2023Article
- Ten Rules for the Management of Moderate and Severe Traumatic Brain Injury During Pregnancy: An Expert Viewpoint.Frontiers in neurology · 2022Review
- Clearance of buprenorphine during pregnancy and neonatal outcomes.Archives of women's mental health · 2021Observational
- The impact of maternal epilepsy on delivery and neonatal outcomes.Child's nervous system : ChNS : official journal of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery · 2020Article
- Study of gender-related pharmacokinetics of ezogabine in Egyptian volunteers by a validated LC-MS/MS bioanalytical method.Journal of advanced research · 2020Article
- Antiepileptic Drugs Usage in Pregnant Women with Epilepsy in Saudi Arabia.Journal of epilepsy research · 2019Article
- Comprehensive management of epilepsy in onchocerciasis-endemic areas: lessons learnt from community-based surveys.Infectious diseases of poverty · 2019Review
- Obstetric outcomes and effects on babies born to women treated for epilepsy during pregnancy in a resource limited setting: a comparative cohort study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2018Article
- Antiepileptic drugs in development pipeline: A recent update.eNeurologicalSci · 2016Review
- Issues for Women with Epilepsy.Neurologic clinics · 2016Review
- Article
- Management of epilepsy during pregnancy: evidence-based strategies.Future neurology · 2015Article
- Neurodevelopmental effects of fetal antiepileptic drug exposure.Drug safety · 2015Review
- Neurosteroids and their role in sex-specific epilepsies.Neurobiology of disease · 2014Review
- Article
- Women with epilepsy planning pregnancy: we can improve outcomes by improving care.Epilepsy currents · 2013Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Most infants born to women with epilepsy are healthy, but there are increased risks related to in utero antiepileptic drug (AED) exposure and seizures. Emerging data from pregnancy registries and other studies allow us to better balance the anatomic teratogenic and neurodevelopmental effects of AEDs against the need to maintain maternal seizure control. Several large prospective pregnancy registries demonstrate a consistent pattern of increased risk for major congenital malformations (MCMs) with valproate (VPA) use as monotherapy, compared to nonexposed populations and to other AEDs used in monotherapy. AED polytherapy likely increases risk for MCMs, but the risk is more pronounced if VPA is included. Reduced cognitive outcomes have been reported with AED polytherapy, and with use of VPA, phenobarbital (PB), and PHT as monotherapy. Dose-dependent risk has been demonstrated with VPA for MCMs and cognitive consequences. CBZ groups show normal neurodevelopment. Increased clearance of most of the AEDs occurs during pregnancy. Use of therapeutic drug monitoring during pregnancy with LTG reduces the risk for seizure worsening. The consistent findings of increased teratogenic risk for VPA should discourage use of this medication as first-line treatment in women of childbearing age.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.