Posted by owensmar on August 28, 2004, at 17:00:50
In reply to Opposing pdoc views re: wellbutrin and seizures, posted by Racer on August 25, 2004, at 13:15:50
> This is pretty much just an academic question, but it's been on my mind, so I'm asking the people who might know from the inside:
>
> Three doctors, three views on Wellbutrin's seizure risk.
>
> Dr One: involuntarily hospitalized after S/A, said Wellbutrin was safe for someone with a history of eating disorders -- as long as the ED wasn't active. She prescribed it at a starting dose, which wasn't up to the therapeutic dose range but seemed to be starting to help when...
>
> Dr Two: (Dr EyeCandy for anyone who's keeping score) *immediately* stopped it, said he had had too many patients experience seizures from it to risk it -- although, he wasn't concerned with any ED history, this was based solely on a skull fracture at the age of five -- and had very, very round eyes at the very thought of the danger. He did say, though, that the dosage was a factor: that his patients at doses over 400mg were 'something like ten times more likely' to experience seizures, but I've got a history of needing very high dosages to respond to any drug other than anti-biotics.
>
> Dr Three: (initial eval yesterday, no *name* yet) said Dr EyeCandy was being *incredibly* overcautious: that Wellbutrin can be perfectly safe, at almost any dosage, for most people with a history of head trauma, and that the ED connection really is only related to purging behavior. He offered me three choices of meds to pick from, one of them was Wellbutrin. He told me the reasons he really didn't think it was the best choice for me, all of which sounded very reasonable and very valid to me, but said he would feel perfectly safe prescribing it to me, despite the history of (multiple) head traumas and the history of (and current) ED.
>
> Yeah, yeah, I'm being much too suspicious of all the doctors say these days -- but I come by it honestly.
>
> This question really ain't keeping me up nights, we did choose the new doc's first choice for me, but it did make me very curious to know what people here had experienced on this topic?
>
> (Warning: I very nearly caught myself typing something like, "Are you now, or have you ever been..." Save us all from any attempt on my part to be funny today -- if you know something that might apply, all input very gratefully anticipated...)
Hi Racer,I've been bulimic for 30 years (since age 17) in remission now. Daily multiple binging/purging behaviour during most of that time.
I've had two different doctors prescribe Wellbutrin for me, saying they weren't worried aobut a seizure risk. One of them I'd consider knowledgable and trustworthy, the other no.
Anyway, I tried it. Took the standard dose of WEllbutrin for about a month and half. No seizures (eating disorder active during this period). Stopped the WB because of side effects.
I think I probably have a high seizure threshold, though, since I quit a benzo cold turkey after 9 years of daily high dosages and didn't have any seizure problems.
Marsha
poster:owensmar
thread:382172
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040825/msgs/383398.html