PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Epilepsy: Mortality Rates (6 October 2020)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on reducing the risk of epilepsy mortality among women with epilepsy and their unborn children of the increase in maternal deaths and increased regulation of epilepsy medications for that group of women and children.

Asked by:
Judith Cummins (Labour)

The need to carefully assess risks of use of certain epilepsy medications in pregnancy and the factors that should be considered by patient and clinician are set out in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) ‘Epilepsies: diagnosis and management’ guideline (originally published January 2012 and updated in February 2020). The update includes strengthened warnings about the specific risks that the anti-epileptic medicine valproate presents to unborn children. As the guideline sets out, in pregnancy valproate is contraindicated and an alternative treatment should be decided on, with appropriate specialist consultation, taking into account the individual clinical needs of the patient and the risks and benefits of particular medications and treatment approaches. The NICE guideline is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg137/resources/epilepsies-diagnosis-and-management-pdf-35109515407813

Answered by:
Ms Nadine Dorries (Conservative)
19 October 2020