What lamotrigine is used for?

Lamotrigine: medicine to treat epilepsy and bipolar disorder – NHS.

Why is this medication prescribed? Lamotrigine extended-release (long-acting) tablets are used with other medications To treat certain types of seizures in patients who have epilepsy.

Common side effects

• Headaches. Make sure you rest and drink plenty of fluids. …
• Feeling drowsy, sleepy or dizzy. …
• Aggression, or feeling irritable or agitated. …
• Shaking or tremors. …
• Difficulty sleeping. …
• Diarrhoea. …
• Feeling or being sick (nausea or vomiting) …
• Mild skin rash.

Those participants who were randomised to receive up to 225 mg of lamotrigine were subsequently found to have Lower levels of affective instability and impulsiveness [assessed using the Zanarini Rating Scale for Borderline Personality Disorder (ZAN-BPD)] 12 weeks later.

Lamotrigine is the only mood stabilizer that calms mood swings by lifting the depression rather than suppressing the mania, says Dr. Aiken. “That makes it a great choice for the bipolar spectrum, where the depressive symptoms usually outweigh the manic ones.

6. Response and effectiveness. Lamotrigine is rapidly absorbed and peak levels are reached within 1.5 to 4.8 hours Of administration. The effects of lamotrigine last for over 24 hours, and once-daily dosing is often prescribed.

The two cases would suggest that LTG may cause anger so severe as to be accompanied with murderous impulse when administered to patients with mood disorders. Physicians should be cognizant of this possible, albeit infrequent, adverse effect even in use of LTG for mood disorders.

Conclusion. Lamotrigine was effective and well tolerated and appeared to have No effect on body weight When given as monotherapy or as adjunctive therapy with valproate, antipsychotics, lithium, or antidepressants to outpatients with bipolar I disorder in a 12-week open-label study.

Mood stabilizers

Low risk of weight gain: Lamotrigine (Lamictal) is Most likely to cause weight loss. However, it can also cause weight gain. Other common side effects of this drug include: headache.

Lamotrigine works by Inhibiting cell pathways in the brain called sodium channels, which reduces the emission of chemicals called glutamate and aspartate, two of the most important excitatory neurotransmitters in the brain.

Lamotrigine, acts through several molecular targets and overcomes the major limitation of other conventional antidepressants by Stabilizing mood from “below baseline” thereby preventing switches to mania or episode acceleration, thus being effective for bipolar I disorder.

In Conclusion. Lamictal (Lamotrigine) is an anticonvulsant medication that is often prescribed to help reduce seizures or epilepsy. However, it is also FDA-approved to treat bipolar disorder and Has shown some effectiveness as an off-label treatment for anxiety and depression.