Journal article
Foetal malformations after exposure to antiepileptic drugs in utero assessed at birth and 12months later: Observations from the Australian pregnancy register
FJE Vajda, J Graham, AA Hitchcock, TJ O'Brien, CM Lander, MJ Eadie
Acta Neurologica Scandinavica | Published : 2011
Abstract
Background- In studies investigating foetal malformations associated with antiepileptic drug exposure during pregnancy, the common practice has been to assess the incidence and nature of the malformations at, or soon after, birth. The adequacy of this approach to determine the true incidence of the malformations has received little attention. Aims of the study- To compare the incidence and natures of the foetal malformations recognized by, or soon after, birth with similar data for malformations recognized in the first post-natal year. Methods -Analysis of data from the Australian Register of Antiepileptic Drugs in Pregnancy. Results- Up to 25% of the malformations recognized by the end of t..
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Funding Acknowledgements
We wish to acknowledge the support of our colleagues, medical and non-medical, both in referring patients and increasing patient awareness of the Register. We thank the Scientific Advisory Board and the Ethical Research Committees of St. Vincent's Hospital, Monash Medical Centre, the Royal Melbourne Hospital and other institutions for their assessments of the study. The Australian Register is indebted for support to the Epilepsy Society of Australia, The Victorian Epilepsy Foundation, Epilepsy Australia and also for generous financial support from the pharmaceutical industry, including Sanofi-Aventis, UCB Pharma, Janssen-Cilag, Novartis and Pfizer, The Royal Melbourne Hospital Neuroscience Foundation and past support from Glaxo.