Liver injury is commonly observed in patients that are prescribed anti-epileptic (AED) medications. These drugs may lead to acute liver failure. Sometimes patients may asymptomatic.
A hypersensitivity to any of these AED medications may lead to Hepatotoxicity:
Phenytoin~ Can occur in less than 1% of patients and may result in liver death.
Carbamazepine~ Patients with reactions are immediately taken off the drug with
no further reactions.
Valproate~ There is two types: Valproate therapy-dose-related and idiosyncratic, which is usually irreversible causing serve Hepatotoxicity.
Valporic Acid~ Hepatotoxicity is rare in the acute overdose setting.
Patients who need a greater dosage of their AED medication will have their baseline liver enzymes checked and will be monitored while they are taking their AEDs.
http://www.theannals.com/cgi/content/abstract/23/1/13
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/417938
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3939742
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1432377
Introduction
Why is Hepatotoxicity important? Because more than 900 drugs can cause it! Hepatotoxicity simply means damage to the liver. There are many commonly known drugs out there that, when misused, can lead to hepatotoxicity.This is a very serious issue that can affect anyone. According to the FDA, drug-induced liver injury is now the leading cause of acute liver failure in the United States!
The liver is a vital organ that has many functions including the production of plasma proteins, the storage of energy reserves, the excretion of bile, and the detoxification of poisons. As you can see, the liver is extremely important! Without it, our body cannot function properly.
There are many signs and symptoms of hepatotoxicity including nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, and jaundice. The signs and symptoms vary from person to person and are explained in more detail throughout our blog.
This issue is very important for all kinds of people because it can happen to anyone and, if left untreated, can become fatal.
Consumers must be aware of the dangers of drug-induced liver damage in order to protect themselves.
This is also an important topic for medical personnel. Knowing about hepatotoxicity will help to treat patients more effectively. Patients suffering from hepatotoxicity will be recognized faster and treated better.
Knowing about drug-induced liver damage will reduce the risk for very serious health problems.
If you are interested in learning more about hepatotoxicity, then you are in the right spot!
http://www.liverfoundation.org/education/info/alcohol
http://www.aasld.org/conferences/meetings/Pages/2009HepatotoxicitySpecialInterestGroupMeeting.aspx
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/169814-overview
The liver is a vital organ that has many functions including the production of plasma proteins, the storage of energy reserves, the excretion of bile, and the detoxification of poisons. As you can see, the liver is extremely important! Without it, our body cannot function properly.
There are many signs and symptoms of hepatotoxicity including nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, loss of appetite, and jaundice. The signs and symptoms vary from person to person and are explained in more detail throughout our blog.
This issue is very important for all kinds of people because it can happen to anyone and, if left untreated, can become fatal.
Consumers must be aware of the dangers of drug-induced liver damage in order to protect themselves.
This is also an important topic for medical personnel. Knowing about hepatotoxicity will help to treat patients more effectively. Patients suffering from hepatotoxicity will be recognized faster and treated better.
Knowing about drug-induced liver damage will reduce the risk for very serious health problems.
If you are interested in learning more about hepatotoxicity, then you are in the right spot!
http://www.liverfoundation.org/education/info/alcohol
http://www.aasld.org/conferences/meetings/Pages/2009HepatotoxicitySpecialInterestGroupMeeting.aspx
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/169814-overview
Thursday, February 26, 2009
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It is sad that a patient already dealing with epilepsy and taking medication for that could be causing harm to their liver and not even knowing it if the symptoms are asymptomatic.
ReplyDeleteYes I heard that too. This is very interesting to me because a friend of mine has epilepsy and was talking about her medications. She said that her meds may be causing liver damage, but if she is asymptomatic, then she would have no idea. It is very scary to think that you are trying to treat epilepsy, only to maybe cause other health problems.
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