The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 273 No 7323 p633
30 October 2004

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Guidance on care of women with epilepsy

Women with epilepsy should receive counselling about their medicines in advance of becoming sexually active, according to two sets of guidance published this week.

A clinical guideline from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (see above) includes a section on women with epilepsy and recommends that women receive information on contraception and the potentially harmful effects of anti-epileptic drugs on an unborn child.

The recommendations are echoed in primary care guidelines published by the Royal Society of Medicine. The RSM guidelines advise that, generally speaking, GPs should not be responsible for starting or changing anti-epileptic drugs.