Anti-Convulsant Drugs And Birth Defects (NAPSA)—Pregnant women know to carefully monitor what they put in their bodies, but what if the medicine you need to take might hurt your baby? It’s a problem that the more than 2 million women of childbearing age who take anti-convulsant medication may haveto face. The medication is used to treat epilepsy, certain psychological dis- orders and migraines, among other ailments. One recent study looked at the effect of anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs) on birth defect rates. It found that a drug called Valproate Pregnant women with epilepsy should talk to their doctors about their anti-convulsant drugs. but that other AEDs posed risks share experiences with others posed the greatest risk to fetuses, as well. The good news is that women with epilepsy have a variety of treatment options. To learn about these options, talk to your doctor and consider attending a Womenand Epilepsy one-day educational forum or check out a forum online. The forums are intended to educate participants on the many issues that impact women living with epilepsy and their families. Their focus will be on providing women with epilepsy and their families critical information relat- ing to health care, education and family support. In addition, the educational forums offer an oppor- tunity for women with epilepsy and their families to meet and dealing with similar issues. Check www.epilepsyfounda tion.org for forum dates and loca- tions and information on the Novemberonline forum. There are also other steps preg- nant women can take. They include talking with a health care provider as soon as you know you are pregnant, taking folic acid before and during pregnancy and staying up-to-date on anti-convulsant news. As a final tip, all pregnant women whotake anti-convulsants are encouraged to enroll in the North American Antiepileptic Drug Pregnancy Registry at www.aedpregnancyregistry.org or at (888) 233-2334.
