Lyrica approved for Epilepsy by the FDA

[Bernard]

Apparently, this is the first new epilepsy drug approved by the FDA in five years:

Lyrica works by binding to a protein within the rapidly firing nerve cells and calms the system.
“In those patients who have not responded to many drugs that have been tried before, when this medication, Lyrica was added, in a full 50 percent of them, got at least 50 percent control of their seizures.”

...

Some adverse side effects occurring during all controlled clinical trials for patients taking Lyrica included dizziness, dry mouth, blurry vision, weight gain and difficulty concentrating.

FDA Approves New Epilepsy Drug

A drug recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat epileptic seizures may be linked to a serious neurological complication if stopped abruptly, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) report in this month's Annals of Neurology.

They describe the case of an 80-year-old women enrolled in a clinical trial of Pfizer's Lyrica (pregabalin), who abruptly discontinued the medication after taking it for nearly a year and went on to develop neurological symptoms including headache, confusion and hallucinations. A statement by the Boston hospital says the study's authors suggest that all patients stopping antiepileptic drugs do so gradually to avoid similar problems.

Report Cites Reaction to New Anti-Epilepsy Drug