167
Views
12
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Review

Women and epilepsy: review and practical recommendations

&
Pages 289-300 | Published online: 09 Jan 2014

References

  • National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). The Diagnosis and Management of Epilepsy in Adults and Children in Primary and Secondary Care. NICE. London, UK (2004).
  • Taubøll E, Gjerstad L, Henriksen T, Husby H. Svangerskap og fødsel hos kvinner med epilepsi [Pregnancy and birth in women with epilepsy]. Tidsskr. Nor. Laegeforen.123, 1695–1697 (2003).
  • Røste LS, Henriksen T, Gjerstad L, Husby H, Taubøll E et al. Retningslinjer for Behandling av Kvinner med Epilepsi. Konsensusrapport 2006. Den Norske Lægeforening, Norway. ISBN 978-82-8070-046-3, 1–36 (2007).
  • Wheless JW, Kim HL. Adolescent seizures and epilepsy syndromes. Epilepsia43(Suppl. 3), 33–52 (2002).
  • Stitt SL, Kinnard WJ. The effect of certain progestins and estrogens on the threshold of electrically induced seizure patterns. Neurology18, 213–216 (1968).
  • Herzog AG, Friedman MN. Menstrual cyclus interval and ovulation in women with localization-related epilepsy. Neurology57, 2133–2135 (2001).
  • Klein P, van Passel-Clark L, Pezzullo JC. Onset of epilepsy at the time of menarche. Neurology60, 495–497 (2003).
  • Hauser WA, Annegers JF, Kurland LT. Incidence of epilepsy and unprovoked seizures in Rochester, Minnesota: 1935–1984. Epilepsia34, 453–468 (1993).
  • Svalheim S, Taubøll E, Bjørnenak T et al. Onset of epilepsy and menarche – is there any relationship? Seizure15, 571–575 (2006).
  • Herzog AG, Seibel MM, Schomer DL, Veitukaitis JL, Geschwind N. Reproductive endocrine disorders in women with partial seizures of temporal lobe origin. Arch. Neurol.43, 341–346 (1986).
  • Herzog AG, Coleman AE, Jacobs AR et al. Interictal EEG discharges, reproductive hormones, and menstrual disorders in epilepsy. Ann. Neurol.54, 625–637 (2003).
  • Bilo L, Meo R, Nappi C et al. Reproductive endocrine disorders in women with primary generalized epilepsy. Epilepsia29, 612–619 (1988).
  • Herzog AG, Friedman MN. Menstrual cycle interval and ovulation in women with localization-related epilepsy. Neurology57, 2133–2135 (2001).
  • Perucca E, Hedges A, Makki KA et al. A comparative study of the relative enzyme inducing properties of antiepileptic drugs in epileptic patients. Br. J. Clin. Pharmacol.18, 401–410 (1984).
  • The Rotterdam ESHRE/ASRM-sponsored PCOS consensus workshop group. Revised 2003 consensus on diagnostic criteria and long-term health risks related to polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Hum. Reprod.19, 41–47 (2004).
  • Isojärvi JIT, Laatikainen TJ, Pakarinen AJ, Juntunen KTS, Myllylä VV. Polycystic ovaries and hyperandrogenism in women taking valproate for epilepsy. N. Engl. J. Med.329, 1383–1388 (1993).
  • Isojärvi JIT, Taubøll E, Pakarinen AJ et al. Altered ovarian function and cardiovascular risks in valproate treated women. Am. J. Med.111, 290–296 (2001).
  • O’Donovan C, Kusumakar V, Graves G, Bird D. Menstrual abnormalities and polycystic ovary syndrome in women taking valproate for bipolar mood disorder. J. Clin. Psychiatry64, 322–330 (2002).
  • McIntyre RS, Mancini DA, McCann S, Srinivasan J, Kennedy SH. Valproate, bipolar disorder and polycystic ovarian syndrome. Bipolar Disord.5, 28–36 (2003).
  • Joffe H, Cohen LS, Suppes T et al. Longitudinal follow-up of reproductive and metabolic features of valproate-associated polycystic ovarian syndrome features: a preliminary report. Biol. Psychiatry60(12), 1378–1381 (2006).
  • Røste LS, Taubøll E, Berner A, Isojärvi JIT, Gjerstad L. Valproate, but not lamotrigine, induced ovarian morphological changes in Wistar rats. Exp. Toxicol. Pathol.52, 545–552 (2001).
  • Røste LS, Taubøll E, Isojärvi JIT, Pakarinen AJ, Huhtaniemi I, Gjerstad L. Effects of chronic valproate treatment on reproductive endocrine function in female and male Wistar rats. Reprod. Toxicol.16, 767–773 (2002).
  • Taubøll E, Gregoraszczuk EL, Kolodziej A, Kajta M, Ropstad E. Valproate inhibits conversion of testosterone to estradiol and acts as an apoptotic agent in growing porcine ovarian follicular cells. Epilepsia44, 1014–1021 (2003).
  • Rättyä J, Vainonpää L, Knip M, Lanning P, Isojärvi JIT. The effects of valproate, carbamazepine, and oxcarbazepine on growth and sexual maturation in girls with epilepsy. Pediatrics103, 588–593 (1999).
  • Vainionpää LK, Rättyä J, Knip M et al. Valproate-induced hyperandrogenism during pubertal maturation in girls with epilepsy. Ann. Neurol.45, 444–450 (1999).
  • Isojarvi JI, Rättyä J, Myllylä VV et al. Valproate, lamotrigine, and insulin-mediated risks in women with epilepsy. Ann. Neurol.43, 446–451 (1998).
  • Bauer J, Jarre A, Klingmüller D, Elger CE. Polycystic ovary syndrome in patients with focal epilepsy: a study in 93 women. Epilepsy Res.41, 163–167 (2000).
  • Bilo L, Meo R, Valentino R, Di Carlo C, Striano S, Nappi C. Characterization of reproductive endocrine disorders in women with epilepsy. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab.86, 2950–2956 (2001).
  • Luef G, Abraham I, Trinka E et al. Polycystic ovaries, obesity and insulin resistance in women with epilepsy. A comparative study of carbamazepine and valproic acid in 105 women. J. Neurol.249, 835–841 (2002).
  • Luef G, Abraham I, Haslinger M et al. Hyperandrogenism, postprandial hyperinsulinism and the risk of PCOS in a cross sectional study of women with epilepsy treated with valproate. Epilepsy Res.73, 121–125 (2002).
  • Betts T, Yarrow H, Dutton N, Greenhill L, Rolfe T. A study of anticonvulsant medication on ovarian function in a group of women with epilepsy who have only ever taken one anticonvulsant compared with a group of women without epilepsy. Seizure12(Suppl. 7), 323–329 (2003).
  • Taubøll E, Gregoraszczuk EL, Tworzydlo A, Wojtowicz K, Ropstad E. Comparison of reproductive effects of levetiracetam and valproate studied in prepubertal porcine ovarian follicular cells. Epilepsia 47(9), 1580–1583 (2006).
  • Svalheim S, Taubøll E, Dahl E et al. Levetiracetam affects gonadotropin levels and peripheral sex hormones in female Wistar rats. Epilepsia46(Suppl. 8), 189 (2005).
  • Yerby MS. Special considerations for women with epilepsy. Pharmacotherapy20(8 Pt 2), 159–170 (2000).
  • Schneider JG, Tompkins C, Blumenthal RS et al. The metabolic syndrome in women. Cardiol. Rev.14, 286–291 (2006).
  • Taubøll E, Lundervold A, Gjerstad L. Temporal distribution of seizures in epilepsy. Epilepsy Res.8, 153–165 (1991).
  • Duncan S, Read CL, Brodie MJ. How common is catamenial epilepsy? Epilepsia34, 827–831 (1993).
  • Herzog AG, Harden CL, Liporace J et al. Frequency of catamenial seizure exacerbation in women with localisation-related epilepsy. Ann. Neurol.56, 431–444 (2004).
  • Herzog AG, Klein P, Ransil BJ. Three patterns of catamenial epilepsy. Epilepsia38, 1082–1088 (1997).
  • Logothetis J, Harner R, Morrell F, Torres F. The role of estrogens in catamenial exacerbation of epilepsy. Neurology9, 352–360 (1959).
  • Herzog AG. Hormones and epilepsy. Acta Neurol. Scand.102(Suppl. 175), 29–31 (2000).
  • Feely M, Calvert R, Gibson J. Clobazam in catamenial epilepsy. A model for evaluating anticonvulsants. Lancet2(8289), 71–73 (1982).
  • Lim LL, Foldvary N, Mascha E, Lee J. Acetazolamide in women with catamenial epilepsy. Epilepsia42, 746–749 (2001).
  • Herzog AG. Clomiphene therapy in epileptic women with menstrual disorders. Neurology38, 432–434 (1988).
  • Trimble MR. On the use of tranquilisers in epilepsy. Epilepsia43(Suppl. 2), 25–27 (2002).
  • Guberman A. Hormonal contraception and epilepsy. Neurology53(Suppl. 1), 38–40 (1999).
  • Crawford P, Chadwick DJ, Martin C et al. The interaction of phenytoin and carbaamzepine with combined contraceptive steroids. Br. J. Clin. Pharmacol.30, 892–896 (1990).
  • Saano V, Glue P, Banfeld CR et al. Effects of felbamate on the pharmacokinetics of a low-dose combination oral contraceptive. Clin. Pharmacol. Ther.58, 523–531 (1995).
  • Doose DR, Wang S-S, Padmanabhan M et al. Effect of topiramate or carbamazepine on the pharmacokinetics of an oral contraceptive containing norethindrone and ethinyl estradiol in healthy obese and non-obese female subjects. Epilepsia44, 540–549 (2003).
  • Fattore C, Cipolla G, Gatti G et al. Induction of ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel metabolism by oxcarbazepine in healthy women. Epilepsia40, 783–787 (1999).
  • Sidhu J, Job S, Singh S et al. The pharmacodynamic consequences of the co-administration of lamotrigine and a combined oral contraceptive in healthy female subjects. Br. J. Clin. Pharmacol.62, 191–199 (2005).
  • Sabers A, Öhman I, Christensen J, Tomson T. Oral contraceptives reduce lamotrigine plasma levels. Neurology61, 570–571 (2003).
  • Reimers A, Helde G, Brodtkorb E. Ethinylestyradiol, but not gestagens reduces lamotrigine serum concentrations. Epilepsia46, 1414–1417 (2005).
  • Mattson RH, Cramer JA, Caldwell BV, Siconolfi BC. Treatment of seizures with medroxyprogesterone acetate: preliminary report. Neurology34, 1255–1258 (1984).
  • Crawford P. Best practice guidelines for the management of women with epilepsy. Epilepsia46(Suppl. 9), 117–124 (2005).
  • Tomson T, Perucca E, Battino D. Navigating toward fetal and maternal health: the challenge of treating epilepsy in pregnancy. Epilepsia45, 1171–1175 (2004).
  • International League Against Epilepsy. Guidelines for the care of women of childbearing age with epilepsy. Commission on genetics, pregnancy, and the child. Epilepsia34, 588–589 (1993).
  • Nau H. Recommendations for the management and care of pregnant women with epilepsy. In: Epilepsy and Pregnancy. Tomson T, Gram L, Sillanpää M, Johannessen SI (Eds). Wrightson Biomedical Publishing, Petersfield, UK 201–208 (1997).
  • Oquni M, Osawa M. Epilepsy and pregnancy. Epilepsia45(Suppl. 8), 37–41 (2004).
  • Tettenborn B. Management of epilepsy in women of childbearing age. CNS Drugs20, 373–387 (2006).
  • Wallace H, Shorvon SD, Tallis R. Age-specific incidence and prevalence rates of treated epilepsy in an unselected population of 2,052,922 and age-specific fertility rates of women with epilepsy. Lancet352, 1970–1973 (1998).
  • Webber MP, Hauser WA, Ottman R, Annegers JF. Fertility in persons with epilepsy: 1935–1974. Epilepsia27, 746–752 (1986).
  • Artama M, Isojärvi JIT, Raitanen J, Auvinen A. Birth rate among patients with epilepsy: a nationwide population-based cohort study in Finland. Am. J. Epidemiol.159, 1057–1063 (2004).
  • Richmond JR, Krishnamoorthy P, Andermann E, Benjamin A. Epilepsy and pregnancy: an obstetric perspective. Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol.190, 371–379 (2004).
  • Yerby MS, Leppik I. Epilepsy and the outcome of pregnancy. J. Epilepsy3, 193–199 (1990).
  • The EURAP Study Group. Seizure control and treatment in pregnancy: observations from the EURAP Epilepsy Pregnancy Registry. Neurology66, 354–360 (2006).
  • Teramo K, Hiilesmaa VK. Pregnancy and fetal complications in epileptic pregnancies. In: Epilepsy, Pregnancy, and the Child. Janz D, Dam M, Bossi L et al. (Eds). Raven Press, NY, USA 53–59 (1982).
  • Tatum WO. The use of antiepileptic drugs in pregnancy. Exp. Rev. Neurother.6, 1077–1086 (2006).
  • Wyszynski DF, Nambisan M, Surve T, Alsdorf RM, Smith CR, Holmes LB. Antiepileptic drug pregnancy registry. Neurology64, 938–939 (2005).
  • Morrow J, Russell A, Guthrie E et al. Malformation risks of antiepileptic drugs in pregnancy: a prospective study from the UK Epilepsy and Pregnancy Register. J. Neurol. Neurosurg. Psychiatr.77, 193–198 (2006).
  • Vajda FJ, Hitchcock A, Graham J et al. Foetal malformations and seizure control: 52 months data of the Australian Pregnancy Registry Eur. J. Neurol.13, 645–654 (2006).
  • Pennell P. Antiepileptic drug pharmacokinetics during pregnancy and lactation. Neurology61(Suppl. 2), S35–S42 (2003).
  • Tran TA, Leppik IE, Blesi K, Sathanandan ST, Remmel R. Lamotrigine clearance during pregnancy. Neurology59, 251–255 (2002).
  • Ohman I, Vitols S, Tomson T. Lamotrigine in pregnancy: pharmacokinetics during delivery, in the neonate, and during lactation. Epilepsia41, 709–713 (2000).
  • Mazzucchelli I, Onat FY, Ozkara C et al. Changes in disposition of oxcarbazepine and its metabolites during pregnancy and puerperium. Epilepsia47, 504–509 (2006).
  • Morrell MJ. Folic acid and epilepsy. Epilepsy Curr.2, 31–34 (2002).
  • Kaaja E, Kaaja R, Matila R et al. Enzyme-inductive AEDs in pregnancy and the risk of bleeding in the neonate. Neurology58, 549–553 (2002).
  • Tsuboi T, Endo S. Incidence of seizures and EEG abnormalities among offspring of epileptic patients. Hum. Genet.36, 173–189 (1977).
  • Ottman R, Annegers JF, Hauser WA, Kurland LT. Higher risk of seizures in offspring of mothers than of fathers with epilepsy. Am. J. Hum. Genet.43, 257–264 (1988).
  • Scheffe IE, Berkovic SF. The genetics of human epilepsy. Trends Pharmacol. Sci.428–433 (2003).
  • Ohman I, Vitols S, Tomson T. Pharmacokinetics of gabapentin during delivery, in the neonatal period, and lactation: does a fetal accumulation occur during pregnancy? Epilepsia46, 1621–1624 (2005).
  • Johannesen SI, Helde G, Brodtkorb E. Levetiracetam concentrations in serum and in breast milk at birth and during lactation. Epilepsia46, 775–777 (2005).
  • Lambert MV. Seizures, hormones and sexuality. Seizure10, 319–340 (2001).
  • Morrell MJ. Sexuality in epilepsy. In: A Comprehensive Textbook of Epilepsy. Engel J, Pedley T (Eds). Lippincott-Raven, PA, USA 2021–2026 (1997).
  • Demerdash A, Shaalan M, Midani A, Kamel F, Bahri M. Sexual behavior of sample of females with epilepsy. Epilepsia32, 82–85 (1991).
  • Jensen P, Jensen SB, Sorensen PS et al. Sexual dysfunction in male and female patients with epilepsy: a study of 86 outpatients. Arch. Sex. Behav.19, 1–14 (1990).
  • Blumer D, Walker AE. Sexual behavior in temporal lobe epilepsy. Arch. Neurol.16, 37–43 (1967).
  • Morrell MJ, Guldner G. Self reported sexual function and sexual arousability in women with epilepsy. Epilepsia37, 1204–1210 (1996).
  • Taylor DC. Sexual behavior and temporal lobe epilepsy. Arch. Neurol.21, 510–516 (1969).
  • Duncan S, Blacklaw J, Beastall GH, Brodie MJ. Sexual function in women with epilepsy. Epilepsia38, 1974–1981 (1997).
  • Klein P, Serje A, Pezzullo JC. Premature ovarian failure in women with epilepsy. Epilepsia42, 1584–1589 (2001).
  • Harden CL, Nikolov BG, Koppel BS et al. Seizure frequency and age of menopause in women with epilepsy. Epilepsia42(Suppl. 7), 291 (2001).
  • Lee MA. Epilepsy in the menopause. Neurology53(Suppl. 1), 41 (1999).
  • Harden CL, Pulver MC, Ravdin L, Jacobs AR. The effect of menopause and perimenopause on the course of epilepsy. Epilepsia38(Suppl. 8), 133–134 (1997).
  • Harden CL, Pulver MC, Ravdin L, Jacobs AR. The effect of menopause and perimenopause on the course of epilepsy. Epilepsia40, 1402–1407 (1999).
  • Abbasi F, Krumholz A, Kittner SJ, Langenberg P. Effects of menopause on seizures in women with epilepsy. Epilepsia40, 205–210 (1999).
  • Harden CL, Herzog AG, Nikolov BG et al. Hormone replacement therapy in women with epilepsy: a randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Epilepsia47, 1447–1451 (2006).
  • Pack AM, Morrell MJ. Adverse effects of antiepileptic drugs on bone structure: epidemiology, mechanisms and therapeutic implications. CNS Drugs15, 633–642 (2001).
  • Stephen LS, McLellan AR, Harrison JH. Bone density and antiepileptic drugs: a case-controlled study. Seizure339–342 (1998).
  • Cummings SR, Nevitt MC, Genant HK et al. Risk factors for hip fracture in white women. Study of osteoporotic fractures research group. N. Engl. J. Med.332, 767–773 (1995).
  • Ensrud KE, Walczak TS, Blackwell T et al. Antiepileptic drugs use increases rates of bone loss in older women: a prospective study. Neurology62, 2051–2057 (2004).
  • Kumandas S, Koklu E, Gumus H et al. Effect of carbamazepine and valproic acid on bone mineral density, IGF-I and IGFBP-3. J. Pediatr. Endocrinol. Metab.19, 529–534 (2006).
  • Pack AM, Morrell M. Epilepsy and bone health in adults. Epilepsy Behav.5(Suppl. 2), S24–S29 (2004).

Website

  • SIGN: Diagnosis and management of epilepsy in adults: a national clinical guideline recommended for use in Scotland. Edinburgh: Scottish Intercollegiale Guidelines Network (2003). www.sign.ac.uk.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.