Posted by SLS on September 15, 2006, at 9:32:14
In reply to Trileptal to help taper down xanax, posted by valene on September 15, 2006, at 8:35:54
> Hi all,
>
> I have heard that Trileptal (son of Tegretol) is often helpful for withdrawal symptoms while reducing benzodiazepine dosage.That is an interesting strategy. I don't doubt that it would work.
Another anticonvulsant to look at would be Depakote. Depakote helps with alcohol withdrawal. Alcohol and benzodiazepines both interact with GABA receptors. I don't know. Looking on Google, I don't see anyone using it that way. Trileptal and Depakote are both sodium channel inhibitors, so there might be something there. Depakote is also more anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) than Trileptal.
After having said all of that about Depakote, it might very well be that Trileptal hits targets that Depakote does not, and is a better drug for benzodiazepine withdrawal.
My personal opinion:
Go with Trileptal. :-)
There have been a few reports of its being used successfully for benzodiazepine withdrawal.
Also, see below.
You can always try Depakote if the Trileptal doesn't help. Don't stop the Trileptal abruptly, though. If you choose to discontinue it, you should taper it, even if the taper is a rapid one. You can cross-taper with Depakote (taper the Trileptal while titrating the Depakote).
- Scott
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Pharmacopsychiatry. 2005 Sep;38(5):222-3. Related Articles, Links
Click here to read
Scheme-based benzodiazepine detoxification with oxcarbazepine -- a case report.Croissant B, Grosshans M, Klein O, Diehl A, Mann K.
We attempted to evaluate the tolerability and efficacy of the antiepileptic drug oxcarbazepine in benzodiazepine detoxification, by observing several cases. Detoxification followed a predefined dosage scheme. All patients detoxified with oxcarbazepine completed the withdrawal successfully, without withdrawal symptoms. The administration of oxcarbazepine according to the scheme proved to be tolerable. The dosage was sufficient. Though uncontrolled case observations must be interpreted with caution, oxcarbazepine appears to be a promising drug in inpatient benzodiazepine withdrawal. It should be examined in further randomized placebo-controlled studies including long-term follow-ups.
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* Case Reports
* Letter
PMID: 16189750 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
poster:SLS
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