Cynthia Harden & Sanjeev V. Thomas 
Epilepsy in Women 

Epilepsy requires careful management and monitoring through a
woman’s life

Epilepsy is a complex disease. The hormonal changes women
experience, both day-to-day menstrual fluctuations and the longer
waxes and wanings of a reproductive lifetime, make the management
of epilepsy even more complicated. At some point, the well-being of
a second person, a fetus, might also have to be taken into
account.

Epilepsy in Women provides a detailed guide to this challenge.
The wide-ranging approach encompasses all aspects of a
woman’s life including:

* Social and psychological impacts

* The impact in reproductive life

* Contraception

* Pregnancy

* Fetal health and long term developmental outcomes

* Lactation

* Menopause

Each practical chapter begins and ends with a case study that
demonstrates the more general challenge. The authors develop themes
to provide clinical guidance based on evidence and
experience.

Written and edited by an international cast of experts, Epilepsy
in Women provides crucial tips and recommendations for
neurologists and gynecologists who need to be aware of the subtle
effects of epilepsy on woman’s life.

Table of Content

Preface, vii

Contributors, ix

1 Gender Difference in Epidemiology and Comorbidities of
Epilepsy, 1

Ettore Beghi and Massimiliano Beghi

2 The Social and Psychological Impacts of Epilepsy, 11

Sanjeev V. Thomas and Aparna Nair

3 Neurosteroid influences on neuronal excitability: The
menstrual cycle and catamenial epilepsy as dynamic models, 23

Doodipala Samba Reddy

4 Catamenial Epilepsy, 41

Erik Taubøll, Line S. Røste and Sigrid
Svalheim

5 Impact of Epilepsy and AEDs on Reproductive Health, 53

Gerhard Luef

6 Contraception and Epilepsy, 64

Anne R. Davis and Kathleen M. Morrell

7 Diagnostic Challenges with Seizures in Pregnancy, 75

Sanjeev V. Thomas

8 Seizure Control During Pregnancy, 91

Anne Sabers

9 Effect of Pregnancy on AED Kinetics, 101

Peter B. Forgacs and Page B. Pennell

10 Fetal and Maternal Risks with Seizures, 115

Vilho K. Hiilesmaa and Kari A. Teramo

11 Obstetrical Outcome and Complications of Pregnancy, 128

Ingrid Borthen and Nils Erik Gilhus

12 Mechanisms of Teratogenic Effects of AEDs, 136

Lynsey E. Bruce, Ana M. Palacios, Bogdan J. Wlodarczyk and
Richard H. Finnell

13 Major Congenital Malformations in Offspring of Women with
Epilepsy, 148

Dina Battino and Torbjörn Tomson

14 Fetal AED Syndromes, 164

Usha Kini

15 Postnatal Cognitive Development, 170

Evan R. Gedzelman and Kimford J. Meador

16 M anagement of the Postpartum Period and Lactation, 184

Autumn M. Klein

17 M anagement of Epilepsy and Pregnancy, 196

Sanjeev V. Thomas, Torbjörn Tomson and Cynthia L.
Harden

18 Perimenopause and Menopause, 200

Cynthia L. Harden

19 Bone Health, 205

Alison M. Pack

Index, 211

About the author

Cynthia L. Harden, MD, Chief of the Comprehensive Epilepsy Care Institute, North Shore LIJ Health System and Professor of Neurology, Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, USA.

Sanjeev V Thomas, MD, Professor of Neurology, Department of Neurology, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum 695 011, India and Fulbright Visiting Professor, Ohio State University, Columbus, USA.

Torbjörn Tomson, MD, Professor of Neurology, especially epileptology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, and consultant/senior physician at Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Sweden.