Antiepileptic drugs in pregnancy: updated advice following comprehensive safety review
A review of the risks of major congenital malformations and of adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes for antiepileptic drugs by the Commission on Human Medicines has confirmed that lamotrigine (Lamictal) and levetiracetam…
COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer/BioNTech and COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca): current advice
Recent advice from the MHRA on the COVID-19 vaccines authorised for use in the UK, including advice for people with allergies and for women during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
The monitoring requirements and discontinuation criteria for dimethyl fumarate (Tecfidera) have been strengthened following a small number of reports of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) in patients with mild …
Liver monitoring requirements and discontinuation criteria for fingolimod have been updated following reports of serious liver injury. Fatal cases of encephalitis and meningitis caused by herpes simplex and varicella zoster …
SSRIs and SNRIs are known to increase bleeding risks due to their effect on platelet function. Data from observational studies suggest that the use of SSRI/SNRI antidepressants during the month before delivery may resul…
Evidence suggests an increased risk of aminoglycoside-associated ototoxicity in patients with mitochondrial mutations, including cases in which the patient’s aminoglycoside serum levels were within the recommended range.
Letters and drug alerts sent to healthcare professionals in December 2020
A summary of letters and drug alerts recently sent to healthcare professionals.