According to the World Health Organization website, epilepsy is a chronic disorder characterized by recurrent seizures, which may vary from a brief lapse of attention or muscle jerks, to severe and prolonged convulsions. The seizure attacks are usually due to sudden, brief, excessive electrical impulses in neurons or group of brain cells. In most cases, epilepsy can be successfully managed with anti-epileptic drugs however some like Topamax, is required by FDA a suicide warning on the drug label. About 2 million people in America is estimated to have this condition and newly-discovered cases are common in children and older adults. Women compose a small fragment of the entire population diagnosed with epilepsy. They encounter a different situation since they have hormones that can greatly have an effect on their accounts of seizure attacks.
Women and their Monthly Cycle
The most common sex hormones found in women are estrogen and progesterone and they play a very big role during the menstrual cycle. Estrogen is a hormone which can make the neurons in our brain increase their electrical activity while progesterone is known to inhibit the electrical impulses; it acts as an opposite of estrogen. Throughout the menstrual cycle, both these hormones fluctuate. During ovulation, the amount of estrogen in the body increases and the brain becomes too excited that is why most women have seizure episodes by this time. On the other hand, some have seizure attacks when there is a rise in progesterone and decrease of estrogen in the body. The rise and drop of hormones may not be directly attributed with the cause of seizures but it can definitely influence the occurrence.
The Effect of Anti-Epileptic Medications to Women
Aside from their hormones, women with epilepsy are at risk because of their anti-epileptic medications. Well-observed tests and observations have shown that anti-epileptic drugs including Topamax are connected with the formation of congenital anomalies. The medication Topamax has been reclassified by the U.S. FDA from Pregnancy Category C to Category D as it has been connected with the formation of birth defects like clefts and hypospadias to babies born in women who use the drug. Physicians are also encouraged to be careful in prescribing the said medication to pregnant women and those of childbearing age. Women who used the medication and felt the adverse effects have looked for Topamax birth defect lawyers to be rightfully compensated for all the troubles they experienced.
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