Taking Valproic Acid Capsules with alcohol or drugs that cause sleepiness or dizziness may make your sleepiness or dizziness worse.Medicines are sometimes prescribed for purposes other than those listed in a Medication Guide. Pregnant women receiving monotherapy for epilepsy were enrolled with assessments of their children at ages 3 years and 6 years. Your blood levels of valproic acid may need to be checked.If you need surgery, tell the surgeon ahead of time that you are using valproic acid.In case of emergency, wear or carry medical identification to let others know you use valproic acid.Do not stop using valproic acid suddenly, even if you feel fine. For these patients under 2 years, Along with its needed effects, valproic acid may cause some unwanted effects. This figure shows that the proportion of patients achieving any particular level of improvement was consistently higher for divalproex sodium than for placebo. These defects occur in 1 to 2 out of every 100 babies born to mothers who use this medicine during pregnancy. Do not take two doses at one time.Seek emergency medical attention or call the Poison Help line at 1-800-222-1222.Drinking alcohol may increase certain side effects of valproic acid.Avoid driving or hazardous activity until you know how valproic acid will affect you.
The rate of congenital malformations among babies born to mothers using valproate is about four times higher than the rate among babies born to epileptic mothers using other anti-seizure monotherapies. These incidents usually have occurred during the first six months of treatment. Encourage women who are taking valproic acid during pregnancy to enroll in the North American Antiepileptic Drug (NAAED) Pregnancy Registry by calling toll-free 1-888-233-2334 or visiting the website, http://www.aedpregnancyregistry.org/. "Call your healthcare provider right away, if you have any of the symptoms listed above.The common side effects of Valproic Acid Capsules include:Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects.
Valproic acid side effects Get emergency medical help if you have signs of an allergic reaction (hives, difficult breathing, swelling in your face or throat) or a severe skin reaction (fever, sore throat, burning eyes, skin pain, red or purple skin rash with blistering and peeling). For example, in one study, the half-life in children under 10 days ranged from 10 to 67 hours compared to a range of 7 to 13 hours in children greater than 2 months.Pediatric patients (i.e., between 3 months and 10 years) have 50% higher clearances expressed on weight (i.e., mL/min/kg) than do adults.
Pregnancy registry data show that maternal valproate use can cause neural tube defects and other structural abnormalities (e.g., craniofacial defects, cardiovascular malformations, hypospadias, limb malformations). Because most trials included in the analysis did not extend beyond 24 weeks, the risk of suicidal thoughts or behavior beyond 24 weeks could not be assessed.The risk of suicidal thoughts or behavior was generally consistent among drugs in the data analyzed. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.Sometimes it is not safe to use certain medications at the same time. If such signs or symptoms are present, the patient should be evaluated immediately. Some of the cases have been described as hemorrhagic with rapid progression from initial symptoms to death. If the decision is made to us e Valproic Acid Capsules, you should use effective birth control (contraception).Inflammation of your pancreas that can cause death.Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any of these symptoms:Like other antiepileptic drugs, valproic acid may cause suicidal thoughts or actions in a very s mall number of people, about 1 in 500.Call a healthcare provider right away if you have any of these symptoms, especially if they are new, worse, or worry you:How can I watch for early symptoms of suicidal thoughts and actions?Do not stop Valproic Acid Capsules without first talking to a healthcare provider.What should I tell my healthcare provider before taking Valproic Acid Capsules?Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, Do not stop taking Valproic Acid Capsules without first talking to your healthcare provider.What should I avoid while taking Valproic Acid Capsules?What are the possible side effects of Valproic Acid Capsules? Upsher-Smith Laboratories Inc, Minneapolis, MN. The fraction of phenobarbital dose excreted unchanged increased by 50% in presence of valproate.There is evidence for severe CNS depression, with or without significant elevations of barbiturate or valproate serum concentrations. Alternative antibacterial or anticonvulsant therapy should be considered if serum valproate concentrations drop significantly or seizure control deteriorates In a double-blind, multicenter trial of valproate in elderly patients with dementia (mean age = 83 years), doses were increased by 125 mg/day to a target dose of 20 mg/kg/day. Ask your doctor about any risk.Follow all directions on your prescription label and read all medication guides or instruction sheets. If pancreatitis is diagnosed, valproic acid should ordinarily be discontinued. Select one or more newsletters to continue.