its been 8 months since my mothers TBI- she had a seizure yesterday-she has been off keppra for 1 1/2 months-the side effects of keppra are aweful-they ask her questions and wonder why she is out of it and doesn't know her last name-(after they gave her keppra in the hospital) what can she take that is less evasive to her health and recovery??
I'm a 48 yr old black female who began having seizures 7-8 yrs ago. they have increased to about 1 time a week. I'm taking 750 mg of Keppra and Dilantin 100mg 2 x a day.
Hi everyone,
I'm new to this community.
My neurologist just informed me that Osteoporosis and shrinkage of the Cerebellum are very serious side effects for long term users of Dilantin. Does anyone know more about this?
I've been taking 500mg of Dilantin for over 30 years since I was a teenager, and now I'm terribly worried. Not one of the neurologists had mentioned anything about this over the years, and now at 46, I've learned that I may have severe osteoporosis.
I was toxic once and my dosage had to be lowered. But, now my levels are too low. I take Keppra and have had no side-effects. I'm also taking Gabapentin. I've had 2 seizures. My Neurologist told me that a person that has 1 seizure in their lifetime needs to take medication for the rest of their life. It's so scary. I hope everything turns out okay for you.
(cerebellar atrophy) so he slowly took me off of Dilantin and put me on Keppra - 500 2xa day, I was aready on Diamox,and tegertol.............and my seizures are under control now and i have about 3 seizures every month or 2...........I have been keeping a log and I found out about every 30 days i get real sleeply for 3 days, so for those 3 days I take 250mg of Keppra. It stops more from coming that day...................Don't get on Dilantin try getting on Keppra.
Surprisingly, much of the literature has focused on the effects of anticonvulsant therapy on intrinsic thyroid function rather than the converse. Such medications as carbamazepine and phenytoin have been shown to displace thyroxine from plasma protein-binding sites and potentially increase its clearance. Free thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) will be increased, while serum T4 and T3 levels will be decreased.
My daughter is now experiencing several side effects to keppra. She is extremely drowsy, very short tempered, depressed, and is reporting to me that her memory is 'foggy'. She's on a very low dose of keppra, only 250 mg at night and 125 mg in the morning. She's been on it a total of 3 weeks now. I've been with her and she seems to be very melancholy and also short fused over the many situations. She weighs 100 pounds and is 20 years old.
I read something on rxlist about moodswings and irritibility related to Keppra. It's believed that Keppra makes your brain "dump" Vitamin B6 at times which lowers dopamine or seratonin levels and makes you feel horrible.
Does your daughter take vitamins? I'd try some Vitamin B6 if her multivitamin doesn't contain it. I started taking Trader Joe's High Potency vitamins and feel much, much better since starting.
Good luck.
During those times I had not yet been diagnosed and was able to go back to life like normal, however after the diagnosis and being on phenytoin and switching to oxcarbazepine i am feeling awful. Dizzy, nauseated, moody, extremely tired, severe headaches that come and go. All i get from my Neurologist is these are side effects that will eventually go away. Because i never know when these symptoms will come on too strong I have missed a lot of days at work during my probation period.
They are like a partial complex seizure. I saw a neurologist and was started on Keppra. I was up to 2,500mg a day and they were not stopping. I began to track them carefully and I believe I saw a pattern of only during the 2nd half of my monthly cycle, days 15 - 28 (and usually between 18 and 21) My neurologist decided to put me in the hospital to do a video EEG monitoring and I told him the dates it needed to be. We hit it right and it was determined that my seizures are NES.
Anyone else on Keppra to prevent myoclonic jerks (JME diagnosed)? I am, and have been on Keppra for almost 5 years. Started at age 23 and I am now 28. At the beginning they made me very sluggish, but after about 2 months I felt wonderful (since it was the first time in my life I wasn't having seizures!!
After a very frightening last 2 weeks of my boyfriend on Keppra my doctor did say to ween him off which I've done. Today is the first day off it and he still seems to have the dillusional aggressive side effects that I am hopeful after reading your post.....I pray to god that the old person before this drug comes back. How was those last few weeks for your son?
This reaction is generally confined to the extremities but can affect the trunk and face and may be irreversible. Severe dermatologic reactions to phenytoin are infrequent. Some evidence, however, suggests that erythema multiforme is more likely in patients who undergo radiation therapy while receiving phenytoin.[22]
Lupus-like symptoms have been described for phenytoin. Whether phenytoin administration will exacerbate preexisting idiopathic systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is unclear.
Folic acid supplementation in folate-deficient patients with epilepsy changes the pharmacokinetics of phenytoin, usually leading to lower serum phenytoin concentrations and possible seizure breakthrough..."
It however says that initiation of Folic acid and phenytoin together is beneficial.
Since you can't go back and start all over again, you can take a small dose. It has been observed that as los as 1mg dose can perturb phenytoin’s levels, You may take doses lower than 1mg/day.
I started to feel tension and tingling in right leg and getting muscle spasms at night, within a week I got the dilantin back and was back up to 400 mg.Weaned off dialtin(had low vit d) since then and on to keppra. About a week after I was at work and my leg from hip down was having severe contortions and spasms, feels like my bones will break as opposing muscles work against eachother. This would happen in clusters throughout day and night(much worse at night) for a week.
Was on lamicatal er when shaking started on right side of body but had a allergic reaction to it..
I to have been taking Keppra and told can't drive for six months, yesterday my Oncologist informed me that only a Neurologist can authorize driving and I will need to probably get off keppra to get permission to drive. Was also informed that you can not just stop this drug.
Moban® brand of molindone hydrochloride contains calcium ions which interfere with the absorption of phenytoin. Ingestion times of phenytoin and antacid preparations containing calcium should be staggered in patients with low serum phenytoin levels to prevent absorption problems”. Taken from http://www.rxlist.com/cgi/generic/phenyt_od.htm
Our population is divided into 4 type of metabolizers ranging from rapid to slow metabolizers depending upon the speed of elimination of drug from body.
So after staying overnight and at the vet the next day he came home and has been on Keppra and phenobarbital. 500mg 2x a day Keppra and 60mg 2x a day pheno. He has the side effects which are lessening but hasn't been as bad as I read could be. He is very responsive and is pretty much himself besides the side effects(weak legs, tired). It's been 6 days and no seizures so far. Will be going to vet in a week for check up and blood test again. I am so on edge..
I have no health insurance. I was finally got a really basic coverage, but it doesn't cover keppra. i've been taking keppra for a 2 months. I was switched to phenobarbitol for when I run out. since keppra is not on the charity's formulary.
I hope to God that I cant find some source of keppra before I run out. The phenobarb is scary.
So I'm excited about the links here:
http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/index.php
http://www.needymeds.
And sent use home alll my boyfriend wanted to do was go back to sleep cause his head was hurting so bad 3 hours later he sat up in bed and I starting asking him questions he should now and got no response so I helped him off the bed and onto the floor he then started poking me and saying 123456 and then started looking threw bags and then I continued to ask him questions he then said my name so i was re leaved this episode/ seizure lasted 2-3 min and his body was hot and sweaty so I called the
Recommended
