(This blog was originally posted on January 27, 2014)
Benefits of breastfeeding on the development
of children are well-known. However, obstetricians and other physicians and
nurses often warn women who take anti-epileptic medications to “never breastfeed.” This is because the medical community is
concerned about side effects of these medications in her breast milk that are
passed on from the mother to the infant.
A study by Meador KJ, Baker GA, et. al.,
published in 2010 in the journal Neurology,
volume 75, pages 1954-60, disputes these previously held beliefs. The study
showed that children who were breastfed for an average of 6 months by mothers
on anti-epilepsy medications did not have worse IQs when tested at 3 years of
age compared with children born to mothers who did not breastfeed their babies
but who were taking anti-epilepsy drugs during pregnancy. The mothers were
taking carbamazepine (Tegretol), lamotrigine (Lamictal), phenytoin (Dilantin)
or valproate (Depakote) while they were pregnant. A follow-up Multicenter
Neurodevelopmental Effects of Antiepileptic Drugs (NEAD) Study included medical
facilities in the United States and United Kingdom. These NEAD researchers have
now followed these children up to age 6 years without showing deleterious
results on their IQ. The research groups’ abstract—not yet published―was
reported on page 1 of the
December 19, 2013 issue of Neurology Today by journalist Thomas R. Collins.
New mothers should discuss with their
physicians that updated information supports the benefits of breastfeeding even
while taking these drugs that were used in the study: carbamazepine (Tegretol),
lamotrigine (Lamictal), phenytoin (Dilantin) or valproate (Depakote). Because
of well-recognized teratogenic risks of congenital malformations and lowered IQ
in offspring of mothers taking valproate during pregnancy, valproate should be
avoided during pregnancy, if possible.
Lance Fogan, M.D. is Clinical Professor of Neurology at the David
Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. DINGS is his first novel. It is a
mother’s dramatic story that teaches
epilepsy.
No comments:
Post a Comment