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Bipolar drug Lamictal tied to birth defects when used by expectant mothers



 
 
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Old October 3rd 06, 04:44 AM posted to misc.health.alternative,misc.kids.health,talk.politics.medicine
Ilena Rose
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Default Bipolar drug Lamictal tied to birth defects when used by expectant mothers




Bipolar drug Lamictal tied to birth defects when used by expectant
mothers

http://www.newstarget.com/020602.html
by Mike Adams


(NewsTarget) The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Friday
that expectant mothers taking GlaxoSmithKline's epilepsy and bipolar
disorder drug Lamictal could experience a higher rate of birth defects
than women not taking the drug.

A recent registry of 564 pregnant women who took Lamictal during their
first trimester showed that five women gave birth to babies with cleft
lip or cleft palate -- a gap in the upper lip or roof of the child's
mouth. The FDA recently posted a safety alert on its website warning
that women who are pregnant and taking Lamictal should consult with
their doctor, though the agency says more verifiable data is needed to
prove the connection. The alert noted that similar registries had not
recorded such a high rate of cleft lip and palate incidences in the
past.

FDA critic and nutrition author Mike Adams says the FDA is dragging
its feet in pulling a potentially dangerous drug off the market. "That
the FDA continues to allow psychotropic drugs to be prescribed to
expectant mothers is an outrage," Adams said.

British drug giant GlaxoSmithKline says it learned of the registry's
results in December 2005, when it notified the FDA of the problem. In
June of this year, Glaxo sent a letter to doctors explaining the
registry's findings.

"What the North American registry found hasn't been replicated by
other pregnancy registries," said Holly Russell, director of product
communications for Glaxo. "It's FDA's position as well as our own that
without confirming data the important thing is to continue to monitor
data from ongoing pregnancy registries and other sources."

GlaxoSmithKline announced last week that the FDA had recently approved
Lamictal -- which brought in profits of $1.34 million for the company
last year -- for treating epilepsy patients who suffer grand mal
seizures, in addition to treating other epileptic disorders and
bipolar disorder.

However, Adams says all consumers taking the drug should be aware of
potential dangers, especially pregnant women or women who may become
pregnant. "These drugs cause permanent harm to the fetus, resulting in
birth defects, stunted development and enormous future health care
costs," he said.

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http://www.BreastImplantAwareness.or...WatchWatch.htm
 




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