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Doctor wants him to switch from Dilantin to Lamictal
Tue, 05/06/2008 - 21:53Comments
Re: Doctor wants him to switch from Dilantin to Lamictal
Submitted by scorpio on Wed, 2013-07-31 - 04:58
Changing the medication from Dilantin/phenytoin is a very good idea. I did it myself 15 years ago and have never regretted it. The slower the change the better however for two reasons, the main one being that Lamictal's side-effects are more likely to materialise if its uptake is too fast, if they appear at all, and the other being that phenytoin reduces the efficacy of most drugs taken alongside it. In the case of the latter, the 200mg/d Lamictal that I take now, on its own, is at least as effective for me as 400mg/d level I had reached before I finally removed the phenytoin altogether.
Timewise, I completed the first changeover in 3 months, from 100% phenytoin to 100% Lamictal, and another couple of months reducing the Lamictal to what I take now, 200mg/d. Two stages really.
Chris
Changing the medication from Dilantin/phenytoin is a very good idea. I did it myself 15 years ago and have never regretted it. The slower the change the better however for two reasons, the main one being that Lamictal's side-effects are more likely to materialise if its uptake is too fast, if they appear at all, and the other being that phenytoin reduces the efficacy of most drugs taken alongside it. In the case of the latter, the 200mg/d Lamictal that I take now, on its own, is at least as effective for me as 400mg/d level I had reached before I finally removed the phenytoin altogether.
Timewise, I completed the first changeover in 3 months, from 100% phenytoin to 100% Lamictal, and another couple of months reducing the Lamictal to what I take now, 200mg/d. Two stages really.
Chris
Re: Doctor wants him to switch from Dilantin to Lamictal
Submitted by just_joe on Sun, 2013-07-28 - 17:36
Dilantin was a great medication. I used it for about 35 years. After being on it for that length of time I had become toxic on it. As for geting someone off one medication and onto another. It has been done to me many times. People are eased off one while they add the other. I had no problems or seizures while they did that. They do it just like they do when putting someone on medications. Ease off while adding the new one little at a time. When they took me off dilantin and put me on the new medication it took about 1 week but we had already reduced the dilantin in half before I saw the neuro which I had done knowing the dilantin was causing the problem. I had increased the tegratol I was taking by 1 tablet which kept me from having seizures.
Hope this information helps.
Understand too that side effects do not happen to all people on medications. The number of people with those side effects is a small percentage.
good luck and I do hope he gets seizure free
Dilantin was a great medication. I used it for about 35 years. After being on it for that length of time I had become toxic on it. As for geting someone off one medication and onto another. It has been done to me many times. People are eased off one while they add the other. I had no problems or seizures while they did that. They do it just like they do when putting someone on medications. Ease off while adding the new one little at a time. When they took me off dilantin and put me on the new medication it took about 1 week but we had already reduced the dilantin in half before I saw the neuro which I had done knowing the dilantin was causing the problem. I had increased the tegratol I was taking by 1 tablet which kept me from having seizures.
Hope this information helps.
Understand too that side effects do not happen to all people on medications. The number of people with those side effects is a small percentage.
good luck and I do hope he gets seizure free