Summary
In a prospective study, 30 pregnant epileptic patients were followed through their pregnancy to determine the effect of seizures on pregnancy and its outcome and the effect of pregnancy on seizures. An attempt was made to correlate the serum hormone and anticonvulsant drug levels with seizure frequency, complications of pregnancy, occurrence of status epilepticus and teratogenicity. In 14 patients seizure frequency increased, in 15 it remained unchanged and in 1 patient it decreased. There were 2 spontaneous abortions, 2 patients had status epilepticus and 1 offspring of a patient had a ventricular septal defect. This patient was receiving carbamazepine and diphenylhydantoin. Patients with increased seizures frequency had significantly higher oestrogen levels, lower level of progesterone and lower level of anticonvulsant drugs as compared with those with no change in seizures. Patients who had abortions and those who developed status epilepticus had high serum oestrogen levels.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Backstrom T (1976) Epileptic seizure in women related to plasma oestrogen and progesterone during menstrual cycle. Acta Neurol Scand 54:321–347
Blackhan A, Spencer PSJ (1970) Response of female mice to anticonvulsant after pretreatment with sex steroid. J Pharm Pharmacol 22:304–305
Dalessio DJ (1985) Seizure disorder and pregnancy. N Engl J Med 312:559–563
Dill WA, Chucol L, Chang T, Glazko AJ (1972) Simplified benzophenone procedure for determination of diphenylhydantoin in plasma. Clin Chem 17:1200–1201
Kinnard WJ, Still S (1968) The effect of certain progestins and oestrogen on the threshold of electrically induced seizure pattern. Neurology 18:213–216
Knight AH, Rhind EG (1975) Epilepsy and pregnancy. A study of 153 pregnancies in 59 patients. Epilepsia 16:99–110
Levy RH, Yearby MS (1985) Effect of pregnancy on antiepileptic drug utilisation. Epilepsia 26 [Suppl 1]:52–57
Logothetis J, Harner R, Morrel F, Torres F (1959) The role of oestrogen in catamenial exacerbation of epilepsy. Neurology 9:352–360
Matlson RH, Cramer AJ (1985) Epilepsy, sex hormones and antiepileptic drugs. Epilepsia 26 [Suppl] 40–51
Nelson KB, Ellenberg JH (1982) Maternal seizure disorder, outcome of pregnancy and neurologic abnormalities in children. Neurology 32:1247–1254
Okuma T, Takahashi R, Wade T (1988) A collective study of the tratogenicity and foetal toxicity of artiepileptic drugs in Japan. In: Wada JA, Penry JK (eds) Advances in epileptology. Raven Press, New York, pp 511–517
Otane K, Kaneko S, Fukushima Y, Sato T, Nomura Y, Shinagawa S (1983) Possible risk factors on the course of epilepsy during pregnancy. In: XV Epilepsy International Symposium, Washington DC
Schmidt D (1982) Effect of pregnancy on the natural history of epilepsy: review of literature. In: Janz D, Dam M, Richens A, Bossi L (eds) Epilepsy, pregnancy and child. Raven Press, New York, pp 3–14
Terasawa GL, Timinas PS (1968) Electrical activity during oestrous cycle of rats, cyclic charges in limbic structure. Endocrinology 83:207–216
Wooley DE, Timeras PS (1962) Gonad brain relationship, effect of female sex hormone on electroshock convulsion in rat. Endocrinology 70:196–209
Yerby M, Thomas K, Janet D (1985) Pregnancy, complications and outcome in cohert of women with epilepsy. Epilepsia 26:631–635
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bag, S., Behari, M., Ahuja, G.K. et al. Pregnancy and epilepsy. J Neurol 236, 311–313 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00314466
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00314466