Antiepileptic drugs used in pregnancy and their consequences on fetal outcomes: a review of the literature

Abstract

The teratogenic risks caused by intrauterine exposure to antiepileptic drugs (AED) are known, so their prescription is kept under strict control.To describe the fetal adverse effects AED exposure during gestation, reported in the literature during the period 2016-2022. Systematized review of studies that reported fetal adverse effects induced for the exposure to AED in pregnant women in treatment for neurological diagnoses, mainly epilepsy.The search was carried out in PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, SCOPUS, Virtual Health Library, Lilacs and SciELO. 37 articles distributed in thirteen countries in Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania were identified. Adverse perinatal outcomes, both physical and cognitive, were observed in most studies.The most common drugs identified were valproate, topiramate, carbamazepine, lamotrigine and levetiracetam. AED have teratogenic potential in different degrees of risk, causing congenital anomalies or adverse effects in multiple systems of the human body, being the nervous, circulatory and musculoskeletal systems the most affected.