FDA Advises Physicians Against Opting for Valproate in Pregnant Women

The US Food and Drug Administration has advised physicians not to prescribe valproate or valproic acid drugs to women who suffer from severe migraines and who are pregnant or may become pregnant.

The warning comes after a recent study showed that women who take the drugs when pregnant give birth to children who have lower IQ compared to women who do not take the drugs while another study showed that it also increased the risk of autism.

"Valproate medications should never be used in pregnant women for the prevention of migraine headaches because we have even more data now that show the risk for the children outweighs any treatment benefits for this use", FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research's Russell Katz said.



Source: Medindia