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Lamictal and pregnancy

Mon, 02/07/2005 - 20:43

Hi everybody

I have juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. I am currently 32 weeks pregnant and take 300mg of lamictal daily and have remained seizure free and well so far. 

I am concerned about the long term side effects of lamictal on my baby if I breast feed. I have recently read a paper "Concerns regarding lamotrigine and breast feeding" by Liporace et al which makes me concerned about the babys ability to metabolise the drug. I now think that I do not wish to breast feed my baby, but I am wondering if my baby goes through withdrawel from lamictal in the early stages of life will he suffer long term side effects from this. I know that breast feeding and especially colostrum has long term benefits but i am cautious due to the lack of information about what process the baby will use to metabolise it and how the build up of the drug in his system might affect his growth and development.

Has anyone else information or experience of bottle feeding or breast feeding a baby after taking lamictal through the pregnancy.

Would be gretaful for any input on how they are and if you think they went through withdrawal or any other side effects.

Thanks

Bugsbunny

Comments

RE: RE: RE: Lamictal and pregnancy

Submitted by gonenative99 on Sun, 2005-07-24 - 15:00

Hello all- I am new to this community & I want to thank all of you who have posted your information and experiences with pregnancy and lamictal.  My first baby is due next week and I have found that the further my pregnancy goes, the more frightened I get at the "what ifs" that cross my mind at 3:00 am.  I feel so much comfort from the information you have shared and I have to note that out of all the postings I have read so far... not one person has said they have experienced birth defects or developmental delay in their children who were concieved, carried and/or breastfed on Lamictal. I hope I can write back in a few weeks and report a normal delivery and a healthy mama and child as well.

I have been taking 300 mg Lamictal the whole pregnancy, supplemented with the higher levels of folic acid in the first trimester and the 10 mg vitamin k these last few weeks.   I plan on breastfeeding my baby when he comes next week- I have done alot of research on breastfeeding as well- consulting 2 pediatricians, my neurologist, and 2 lactation consultants- who all encourage me to breastfeed, by the way.

  ****Most of the information I have found is the same as what you have already posted, buuuut- the lactation consultants had a book- of course I don't have the exact title, but it addressed medications in breastmilk.  Apparently we metabolize drugs in our breast milk differently than we do in our bloodstreams.  Lamictal was there- listed under Lamotrigine- It was a scientific text, and I'm not sure I understood it fully, but what I got from it (and the lactation consultants, who I will acknowledge are heavily biased for breastfeeding) was that its possible to take your medication and have your child not exposed to Lamictal in your breastmilk AT ALL- because it will metabolize out of your breastmilk anywhere from 1-4 hours after you take it!  So saying- you can take your medication- do a "pump and dump" to get rid of the lamictal-tinged milk, then the next feeding you are offering your child Lamictal free nutrition. ****

I will follow up and try to find the name of the textbook so you all can check- and I also plan on having the baby tested for Lamictal levels and if I find them increasing then I will of course switch to the bottle- but its worth a shot. Maybe we can have the best of both worlds?

Hello all- I am new to this community & I want to thank all of you who have posted your information and experiences with pregnancy and lamictal.  My first baby is due next week and I have found that the further my pregnancy goes, the more frightened I get at the "what ifs" that cross my mind at 3:00 am.  I feel so much comfort from the information you have shared and I have to note that out of all the postings I have read so far... not one person has said they have experienced birth defects or developmental delay in their children who were concieved, carried and/or breastfed on Lamictal. I hope I can write back in a few weeks and report a normal delivery and a healthy mama and child as well.

I have been taking 300 mg Lamictal the whole pregnancy, supplemented with the higher levels of folic acid in the first trimester and the 10 mg vitamin k these last few weeks.   I plan on breastfeeding my baby when he comes next week- I have done alot of research on breastfeeding as well- consulting 2 pediatricians, my neurologist, and 2 lactation consultants- who all encourage me to breastfeed, by the way.

  ****Most of the information I have found is the same as what you have already posted, buuuut- the lactation consultants had a book- of course I don't have the exact title, but it addressed medications in breastmilk.  Apparently we metabolize drugs in our breast milk differently than we do in our bloodstreams.  Lamictal was there- listed under Lamotrigine- It was a scientific text, and I'm not sure I understood it fully, but what I got from it (and the lactation consultants, who I will acknowledge are heavily biased for breastfeeding) was that its possible to take your medication and have your child not exposed to Lamictal in your breastmilk AT ALL- because it will metabolize out of your breastmilk anywhere from 1-4 hours after you take it!  So saying- you can take your medication- do a "pump and dump" to get rid of the lamictal-tinged milk, then the next feeding you are offering your child Lamictal free nutrition. ****

I will follow up and try to find the name of the textbook so you all can check- and I also plan on having the baby tested for Lamictal levels and if I find them increasing then I will of course switch to the bottle- but its worth a shot. Maybe we can have the best of both worlds?

RE: RE: RE: RE: Lamictal and pregnancy

Submitted by gonenative99 on Tue, 2005-08-16 - 20:45

Hi Everyone-

Well- had the baby Aug 3rd via unplanned c-section, but that has to do with the way I am built instead of any problem with siezures or medication.  The baby is fine, beautiful, alert- everything you could want in a child.

I had his Lamictal levels checked at 5 days old- I had been breastfeeding him all along.  Just got the results back- it is ***LESS THAN 1 MICROGRAM PER LITRE OF BLOOD**** in my baby. The pediatrician said that counts as "barely perceptible" in his bloodwork.  I can't interpret what that means for my son- the data just doesnt seem to be out there- but I can only make my decision to breastfeed based on what I find.  I will continue to breastfeed...armed with the current information, I really think the benefits outweigh the risks at this point.

I plan on re-testing his blood after a month of breastfeeding to see if his Lamictal levels have increased, decreased or stayed the same...I will let you know.

I hope this helps someone out there.

Hi Everyone-

Well- had the baby Aug 3rd via unplanned c-section, but that has to do with the way I am built instead of any problem with siezures or medication.  The baby is fine, beautiful, alert- everything you could want in a child.

I had his Lamictal levels checked at 5 days old- I had been breastfeeding him all along.  Just got the results back- it is ***LESS THAN 1 MICROGRAM PER LITRE OF BLOOD**** in my baby. The pediatrician said that counts as "barely perceptible" in his bloodwork.  I can't interpret what that means for my son- the data just doesnt seem to be out there- but I can only make my decision to breastfeed based on what I find.  I will continue to breastfeed...armed with the current information, I really think the benefits outweigh the risks at this point.

I plan on re-testing his blood after a month of breastfeeding to see if his Lamictal levels have increased, decreased or stayed the same...I will let you know.

I hope this helps someone out there.

RE: RE: RE: RE: RE: Lamictal and pregnancy

Submitted by gkurutz on Wed, 2005-08-17 - 10:23
Congratulations on your beautiful, healthy baby.  That is great news for those of us who want to have children while on meds. Thank you for sharing your good news.  I would love to hear more updates when you find the time!  Good luck.

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