Posted by Ron Hill on June 14, 2001, at 14:51:15
In reply to The truth about Lamictal and Rashes, posted by SalArmy4me on June 14, 2001, at 12:21:34
Sal,
Like you, I too am BP II. I'm happy to hear that Lamictal is doing well for you. I tried it and was pleased with it's effect in my brain. However, in spite of the fact that I started at a very low dose (12.5 mg/day), ramped up VERY slowly, and did not take depakote prior to or in conjunction with the Lamictal, I experienced a severe rash. It was not Stevens-Johnson syndrome, but instead was a psoriasis kind of thing that progressed rather quickly to cover a significant portion of my body.
After several months off Lamictal, I tried Depakote and it also caused a similar kind of rash, but not as severe.
Bottom line: Lamictal and the other AE's are great for a lot of folks, yourself included. However, these meds don't work for everyone. My mileage definitely varied.
Lithobid is my MS and it works well for me, and no rash.
--Ron
-------------------------------------------> Lamictal (lamotrigine) is an anticonvulsant now being used to combat bipolar disorder and major depression. But the fear of a rash has caused many to avoid the drug, and they now suffer with a drug that has more side-effects.
>
> The fears over Lamictal (lamotrigine) rashes are unfounded. The chance of having a mild to moderate rash are 3%--according to clinical trials. But clinical trials done years ago do not necessarily predict the incidence of side-effects now. Besides, most of these rashes were due to taking a combination of Valproate and Lamictal, and they resolve without hospital stays. I believe that the chance of a seizure from Wellbutrin is much higher, and the chance of a hypertensive crisis with phenelzine is a little higher.
>
> The chance of having a severe rash leading to hospitalization is reported as 0.3%. With those odds, it is easier to get hit by lightning than it is to have a Lamictal rash. Point in case: You never hear in the paper about someone severely harmed
> by Lamictal.
>
> I have taken Lamictal for one year with a moderate benefit and absolutely no side-effects. I believe that Lamictal will replace Lithium as the drug of choice in bipolar disorder in 10 years, due to its prominent antidepressant effect and benign side-effect profile.
poster:Ron Hill
thread:66463
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010612/msgs/66487.html