If you get a serious side effect, such as a severe skin condition, your doctor may tell you to stop taking levetiracetam straight away, even if you have epilepsy.
Levetiracetam can sometimes cause changes in your mood or behaviour. You may feel angry, agitated or depressed.
This side effect does not affect everyone, but it's important to tell your doctor if you have any changes in your mood, feel depressed or have thoughts of harming yourself. Some people take vitamin B6 also known as pyridoxine alongside levetiracetam to reduce the chances of mood changes. A few studies have reported that vitamin B6 might be helpful, but we do not have enough information to be sure. If you wish to take any vitamins alongside your prescribed medicines, it's important to speak to your pharmacist or doctor, who can advise you what you can take.
Levetiracetam does not affect any type of contraception, including the combined pill and emergency contraception. Some men with epilepsy and taking epilepsy medicines may have reduced levels of testosterone. Some epilepsy medicines also reduce the amount of sperm you produce or affect the quality of it. If you have epilepsy, you're entitled to free prescriptions for all of your medicines not just your epilepsy ones.
To claim your free prescriptions, you'll need a medical exemption certificate. The application form for the medical exemption certificate is called FP92A. You can get this from your doctor's surgery. You'll need to fill in the form, then your doctor will sign it and send it off. But it may make you feel sleepy or tired, and alcohol and hangovers can bring on seizures in some people with epilepsy.
During the first few days of taking levetiracetam, it's best to stop drinking alcohol until you see how the medicine affects you. If you do drink, try not to have more than the recommended guidelines of up to 14 units of alcohol a week.
A standard glass of wine ml is 2 units. A pint of lager or beer is usually 2 to 3 units of alcohol. You may feel sleepy, tired or dizzy when you first start taking levetiracetam or when the dose is increased.
If this happens to you, do not drive or ride a bike or operate machinery until you feel more alert. If you have epilepsy, you're not allowed to drive until you have had no seizures for 1 year. You're also not allowed to drive for 6 months if you change your epilepsy medicine. Driving rules if you change or withdraw your medicine , Epilepsy Action. Epilepsy and driving information , GOV. Page last reviewed: 25 February Next review due: 25 February Levetiracetam - Brand names: Desitrend, Keppra On this page About levetiracetam Key facts Who can and cannot take levetiracetam How and when to take levetiracetam Side effects How to cope with side effects of levetiracetam Pregnancy and breastfeeding Cautions with other medicines Common questions about levetiracetam.
About levetiracetam Levetiracetam is a medicine used to treat epilepsy. Levetiracetam is available on prescription. Help us improve our website Can you answer a quick question about your visit today?
You'll usually start taking levetiracetam once a day and increase to twice a day. You can take it with or without food. The most common side effects of levetiracetam are headaches, feeling sleepy and a blocked nose or itchy throat.
It can take a few weeks for levetiracetam to work. You may still have seizures during this time. Levetiracetam can be taken by adults and children aged 1 month and over.
Levetiracetam is not suitable for some people. To make sure levetiracetam is safe for you, tell your doctor if you: have ever had an allergic reaction to levetiracetam or other medicines in the past have kidney problems have had a low mood depression or thoughts of harming or killing yourself in the past are pregnant, or planning to become pregnant have an intolerance to some sugars — some brands of levetiracetam liquid contain maltitol have ever had an allergic reaction to preservatives and artificial food colourings like sunset yellow E — some brands of levetiracetam contain these.
Dosage The usual dose of levetiracetam to treat epilepsy in: adults and older children aged 12 years and over — mg to 3,mg a day, taken as 1 or 2 doses, but the exact dose may depend on your weight. Will my dose go up or down? Once you find a dose that suits you, it'll usually stay the same. What if I forget to take it? If you take levetiracetam and miss a dose: once a day — take the missed dose as soon as you remember.
If it's less than 12 hours before the next dose is due, leave out the missed dose and take your next dose as normal. If it's less than 8 hours before the next dose is due, leave out the missed dose and take your next dose as normal. Sometimes a change in medication is recommended. Mayo Clinic does not endorse companies or products. Advertising revenue supports our not-for-profit mission.
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See more conditions. Healthy Lifestyle Pregnancy week by week. Products and services. Free E-newsletter Subscribe to Housecall Our general interest e-newsletter keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics. Sign up now. Epilepsy and pregnancy: What you need to know If you have epilepsy becoming pregnant might seem risky, but the odds are in your favor.
By Mayo Clinic Staff. Show references Risks during pregnancy. Epilepsy Foundation. Accessed May 11, Frequently asked questions. Pregnancy FAQ Seizure disorders in pregnancy. Also, they will need to take a blood test to determine how much medication is in your blood.
This number will act as benchmark — throughout pregnancy, your physician will have you get blood tests so they can try to keep that number stable. With most medications, you will need a blood test once per trimester. However, there are certain medications, such as lamotrigine Lamictal , which may require more frequent checks. Until recently, studies suggested that women with epilepsy may have fertility problems.
Fact: You can. In fact, neurologists usually recommend continuing epilepsy medications throughout pregnancy. However, it comes down to the type of medication. Some epilepsy drugs are less often recommended for pregnant women because they can cause developmental problems or birth defects, like cleft lip or spina bifida.
Do not make any changes to your medication without first talking to your doctor. Because of the normal bodily changes associated with a progressing pregnancy, the dose of levetiracetam may need to be adjusted to ensure that symptoms remain well-controlled. Your doctor may offer ongoing monitoring to determine whether dose changes are required. It is mainly during this time that some medicines are known to cause birth defects.
Around 2, babies exposed to levetiracetam during pregnancy have been studied in total and, overall, there is no concern of a link with birth defects.
The likelihood of miscarriage and stillbirth has been studied in only relatively small numbers of women taking levetiracetam. Whilst no concerns of any links have been raised, ongoing research is ideally required to confirm this. One small study found no evidence of a link between taking levetiracetam in pregnancy and preterm birth, but further research is required to confirm this. A side effect of levetiracetam in non-pregnant users is that it may cause weight loss.
Around babies exposed in the womb to levetiracetam have had their birth weights assessed, with no evidence of an effect on growth in the womb. Levetiracetam works in a similar way to other medicines that are known to cause neonatal withdrawal and close monitoring of your baby for a few days after birth may therefore be advised if you have taken levetiracetam regularly in the weeks before delivery.
Monitoring of your baby may be particularly important if you have taken levetiracetam in combination with other anti-epileptic medicines or medicines that act on the brain. The learning and behaviour of around children who were exposed in the womb to levetiracetam has been assessed, with no strong evidence of adverse effects.
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