Topamax Side Effects Top of Mind for Parents

Montreal, PQThe concern over Topamax side effects that was recently highlighted in an advisory from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is of equal concern in Canada, according to a recent edition of the Montreal Gazette. The medication, prescribed to treat migraine headaches and some forms of seizures, has been found to substantially increase the risk of cleft palate or cleaved lips in infants borne from mothers who had been taking Topamax.

The risk of Topamax side effects in women, according to the FDA, is up to 20 times that of women who were not treated with Topamax (topiramate). Cleft palate is a generic term that applies to a defect that can affect either the upper lips or the roof of the mouth—or both—and is symptomatic of a mouth that has not fully formed in the womb. In most cases such Topamax birth defects can be addressed in surgery. However, more involved plastic surgery to hide scarring may not be affordable for some patients, prompting a child to contend with teasing. A cleft palate or cleft lip can also affect speech patterns for a lifetime, given that speech is learned and ingrained as a child.

There could also be permanent physical tolls, given that a cleft lip or palate can prevent a child from receiving adequate nutrition during crucial developmental years, triggered from a medication used during a Topamax pregnancy.

Along with Topamax and pregnancy, another drug prescribed for epileptic seizures—Depakote—has also been linked to birth defects in infants, cleft palate among them.

In the meantime, millions of Americans suffer from migraine headaches, relief from which they often pursue through medication.

There appear to be other topiramate side effects beyond cleft palate. For one Topamax patient submitting to Medications.com, the use of Topamax caused a stuttering problem that was still evident two years after the medication was stopped. According to the contributor, who posted to the Web site last year, Topamax was prescribed for the prevention of migraine headaches. Once the stuttering emerged not long after commencing the Topamax regimen, the patient's doctor urged his patient to remain on Topamax for six months, hopeful that the stuttering would clear itself up.

It did not. Now two years on—and long after the medication was stopped—the stuttering is more manageable but remains an issue nonetheless. The patient also suffered from memory and cognitive issues, and the combination of influences from Topamax topiramate caused grievous issues in the patient's personal life and career.

The most heart-wrenching adverse reactions, of course, remain Topamax side effects in children. Topamax is sold generically by Johnson & Johnson.