Epilepsy Drugs Linked To Increased Suicide Risk

Washington (dbTechno) - The Food and Drug Administration has put out an alert to physicians as they have found that the risk of suicide and other suicidal behavior doubles for patients taking any of the 11 drugs used to treat diseases such as epilepsy.

The FDA put the warning after drug regulators reviewed data from 199 clinical trials on anti-epilepsy medicine.

The medications in question include Pfizer’s Neurontin and Lyrics, as well as others such as Abbot Laboratories’ Depakote, and Ortho-MacNeil Pharmaceutical’s Topamax.

The drugs caused an increased risk of suicide and suicidal thoughts, with symptoms including depression, withdrawal, and others.

The FDA has advised doctors stating “All patients who are currently taking or starting on any anti-epileptic drug should be closely monitored for notable changes in behavior that could indicate the emergence of worsening of suicidal thoughts or behavior or depression.”