Hypospadias Listed as One of Many Dangerous Depakote Birth Defects

New York, NYUsers of the bipolar medication Depakote may already know that the medication poses a slew of different health risks, especially to expectant mothers and their unborn children. One of the most significant birth defects that can develop from the usage of the drug is hypospadias.

span itemprop="image" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/ImageObject" style="display:block">Hypospadias is a unique birth defect typically occurring in male children in which the opening of the child's urethra is abnormally placed on the underside of the child's genitalia. The condition is classified according to three degrees of severity, depending on the placement of the opening.

While the condition lacks the life-threatening severity of some of the other defects associated with use of Depakote, such as hypoplastic heart or spina bifida, the frequency of its diagnosis has caught the attention of the health department at the New York Breaking News, which claims that one in 300 men live with the affliction.

Expectant mothers are advised not to take Depakote, as a seven-year study of neonatal units at five Boston hospitals revealed that more than 20 percent of women using the medications gave birth to children with what the study described as "major" birth defects.