Anticonvulsant therapy, also called antiepileptic or antiseizure drug treatment, uses a diverse group of pharmacological agents to control epileptic seizures by suppressing the excessive and uncontrolled firing of neurons that produces a seizure and by helping prevent that abnormal activity from spreading through the brain. Beyond epilepsy, many anticonvulsants are also used to treat bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder, since a number of them act as mood stabilizers, and to treat neuropathic pain. Conventional anticonvulsant drugs work by diverse mechanisms, most commonly blocking sodium channels or enhancing the activity of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA, and many are known teratogens, carrying an increased risk of birth defects when taken during pregnancy.
Facts
Origin YearSourced to the subject's own account Connections
Sources
1. Anticonvulsant (Wikipedia)
WikipediaWikipedia, Anticonvulsant article, Bromides subsectionQuote, Wikipedia, Anticonvulsant article, Bromides subsection
Potassium bromide (1857) The earliest effective treatment for epilepsy. There would not be a better drug until phenobarbital in 1912.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are anticonvulsant drugs used only to treat epilepsy?
No, they are also used for bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder and neuropathic pain.
No. They are used to control epileptic seizures, but many anticonvulsants are also used to treat bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder and neuropathic pain, since a number of them act as mood stabilizers. Many are known teratogens, carrying an increased risk of birth defects when taken during pregnancy.
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