title: Antiepileptics and blood dyscrasias: a cohort study.
abstract: We conducted a cohort study to investigate the frequency of serious blood dyscrasias in patients age 10-74 years, taking antiepileptic drugs between January 1, 1990, and October 31, 1994. Main outcome measures were validated diagnoses of neutropenia, agranulocytosis, hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, bicytopenia, pancytopenia, or aplastic anemia. A total of 29,357 recipients of antiepileptic therapy received 684,706 prescriptions. Among them there were 21 cases of serious blood dyscrasia of which only 18 could be considered to have a temporal relationship to drug use. Seventeen cases occurred in current users of carbamazepine, phenobarbital, phenytoin or valproate, and 7 in patients taking two or more drugs. Twenty of the 21 patients recovered. The overall rate of blood dyscrasias was 3-4/100,000 prescriptions. The rate in those age less than 60 years was 2.0 (range 0.9-3.6)/100,000 prescriptions compared with 4.0 (range 1.6-8.2) for those age 60 or older. The overall rate of neutropenia was 1.2 (0.5-2.3)/100,000 prescriptions, compared with 0.9 (0.3-1.9) for thrombocytopenia and 0.4 (0.1-1.3) for hemolytic anemia. Rates did not differ among the four drugs. Serious blood dyscrasias are rare in patients taking antiepileptic agents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Drug Safety and Pharmacoepidemiology, Ciba Pharmaceuticals, Horsham, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Blackburn
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Oliart
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: García Rodríguez
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pérez Gutthann
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000740:Anemia / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000453:epidemiology; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000009:adverse effects*; D002220:Carbamazepine / Q000009:adverse effects; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D011307:Drug Prescriptions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006402:Hematologic Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009503:Neutropenia / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000453:epidemiology; D017891:Pharmacoepidemiology; D010634:Phenobarbital / Q000009:adverse effects; D010672:Phenytoin / Q000009:adverse effects; D013921:Thrombocytopenia / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000453:epidemiology; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology; D014635:Valproic Acid / Q000009:adverse effects
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D002220:Carbamazepine; D014635:Valproic Acid; D010672:Phenytoin; D010634:Phenobarbital