Before deciding to use Felbatol, read Serious Side Effects here and ask your doctor or pharmacist for more extensive written information.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lists Felbatol in Pregnancy Category C. This indicates that caution is advised. There have been no studies in women. Studies in animals have not shown malformations but there was harm during lactation.

In general, the risk of birth defects is higher for women who take more than one AED and for women with a family history of birth defects.

Women who are capable of becoming pregnant should take at least 400 mcg (0.4 mg) of folic acid (folate) daily to help prevent a type of birth defect called a neural tube defect. (The best-known of these is spina bifida, in which the spinal cord is not completely enclosed.) Women at high risk, such as those with a history of this kind of defect in a previous pregnancy, should take 4000 mcg (4 mg) daily, beginning before they become pregnant.

About 20% to 35% of women have seizures more often during pregnancy because of changes in hormones or changes in how their seizure medicine is handled by the body. The doctor may recommend checking the level of medication in the blood regularly during pregnancy so that the dosage can be adjusted as needed.

The effect of Felbatol in breast milk on healthy, full-term newborns is unknown.