Lamictal and Coughing

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Starburst

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Hi Everyone...
I was wondering if anyone here has experienced coughing as a side-effect of taking Lamictal.

I have a 2-year-old who just started taking Lamictal 2 weeks ago. He is only taking 5mg at night, but I've noticed that he keeps waking up at night with a bad cough. It's been about 4 nights of coughing, and last night was the worst.

Is it something I need to contact the neurologist about? Or is more likely to be a coincidence that this started at the same time he started Lamictal? He is supposed to ramp up to 10mg per day in a few days, so I am a little worried.
 
I've been on lamictal for years but never really thought about it. I do know I have to sleep with a cough drop in my mouth every night. They are in my night stand beside my bed so I can get to them often. I use between 4-5 a night or I have a cough that is nasty and last all night. Don't know if there is a connection though. It might be worth talking to your neurologist about if having it directly after starting the lamictal.
 
I would think it's a coincedence. Although my daughter had a lot of excess saliva when she starts or increases her lamictal (she's 4) so that could be triggering it. At 5mg, i would think it's very unlikely to be the cause at this point but i am definitely not a doctor :)
 
Thanks to those who replied. The cough is still there, but I'm going to give it a few days before I ask the doctor. After Googling a bit, I found that coughing is one of the rare side-effects associated with Lamictal...but I don't know yet if that is what is going on with my son.
 
I am on Lamictal now and just upped to 125mg. and very healthy, but i have had some strong and unexplainable coughing. but it is when i am awake and is random, it seems to be less often now. You may have something that is temporary as he gets used to the med because it is so new to his body.
 
Thanks, Janus. That gives me some hope. It is pretty hard for a young child to cough that much....it is simply exhausting (for me and him both).
 
I've had unexplained coughing at night on a keppra/tegretol mix, so I'm not exactly sure which was the culprit. Seemed less of an issue if I drank a glass of water before bed, but of course a glass of water before bed means up at least once to the bathroom which is annoying.
Sometimes reflux - even minor - can cause coughing at night. And the excess saliva as chmmr mentioned. Any chance of adjusting the legs of your son's bed/crib or propping it with boards so the head of the bed is higher than the foot of the bed? That might encourage any fluids to slide down his throat more naturally (or not rise up in the case of any reflux).
 
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Oh adding to what Jen said, Reflux (although again not sure at such a low dose) can be triggered by lamictal. My daughter has wound up having such severe reflux from it that we actually put her on a medication for it because she was having so many issues.
 
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