TY - JOUR PY - 2015// TI - Review of toxicity and trends in the use of tiagabine as reported to US poison centers from 2000 to 2012 JO - Human and experimental toxicology A1 - Spiller, H. A. A1 - Wiles, D. A1 - Russell, J. L. A1 - Casavant, M. J. SP - 109 EP - 113 VL - 35 IS - 2 N2 - BACKGROUND: Tiagabine is a novel antiepileptic that acts by increasing synaptic and extracellular gamma-aminobutyric acid concentrations. Information concerning overdose of tiagabine is limited. After introduction, an increasing number of off-label uses suggested that tiagabine use would increase. However in 2005 and 2008, warnings from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were issued on the risk of seizures in non-epileptic and increased suicide ideation. We evaluated the temporal trends associated with these two warnings as well as clinical outcomes from tiagabine overdose.

METHOD: A retrospective review of all single substance tiagabine exposures in National Poison Data System (NPDS) from 2000 to 2012.

RESULTS: A total of 2147 patients had ingested tiagabine, with a mean of 165 year(-1). This was disproportionally distributed, with a steep rise leading up to 2004 (max 559 year(-1)) and then a significant decline (p < 0.05) between 2005 and 2006. The number of cases reported to NPDS mirrored the sales of tiagabine. Clinical effects were predominantly neurological, with the most commonly reported effects being drowsiness (27%), agitation (19%), confusion (12%), seizures (11%), and tachycardia (10%). In all, 758 patients (35%) showed a major or moderate medical outcome, with no deaths reported. A disproportionate share of the major outcomes was in the suicide attempt group (73%). The majority of patients (75%) were treated in a health-care facility (HCF).

CONCLUSIONS: The HCF usage is likely due to high rate of symptomatic patients (59%) and the large proportion of suicide attempt cases. The frequency of tiagabine cases in NPDS mirrored pharmaceutical sales, with steep declines temporally related to the 2005 FDA warning.

Language: en

LA - en SN - 0960-3271 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0960327115579206 ID - ref1 ER -