Posted by Lauren B on November 30, 2003, at 19:07:09
In reply to Re: Lamictal rash: trying to get the story straigh, posted by stjames on November 26, 2003, at 21:09:51
Thanks everyone for the responses regarding Lamictal; I appreciate your opinions and information.
I agree with the woman who posted, “assuming any rash is SJS is a bit of a leap.” My point is, I don't deal well with rashes. Being itchy and splotchy, even for a few weeks at a time as I adjust, is not my bag. I'm better off on my other meds. Maybe I'm still depressed with them, but I'm not ripping my skin off in the process. Good luck to the others who are dealing with side effects and living with them; I hope you have better luck. Still, I'd say Lamictal has been largely misrepresented by the formal medical writings I've seen posted about it. Except for the postings on this site, all other writings I've found make it appear that in certain rare cases a rash, which could be indicative of SJS, occurs. That's it. There's no mention of general rashiness or sun sensitivity. I'm a journalist and if I were being paid to write something informative and useful about Lamictal, I'd write as follows: Lamictal causes skin sensitivity in many people, perhaps up to 40% of all people who take it based on anecdotal evidence gathered in internet postings. It also appears to interact with many drugs, resulting in a hivelike skin reaction, although there has been little formal research on what courses those interactions take. Many people cope with the presence of itchy red bumps as they adjust to the dose: further more, if they miss doses and ramp up again, they get the rash. These bumps (or may not) go away in time, depending on the person. Obviously, as with all medical treatments, the user will have to see if the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.
Now, that's not particularly advanced or elegant prose, but it blows away most of what I've read in terms of clarity.
poster:Lauren B
thread:283539
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031126/msgs/285319.html