Trileptal® or Oxcarbazepine is an anti-epileptic drug (AED) which is very similar in chemical structure and activity to Tegretol®. For this reason, and because it has fewer side effects, it is quickly being adopted in areas that are widely used for Tegretol® or Carbatrol®. The medication is available in tablet and liquid. An intravenous form is under development.

The medication is thought to work by blocking voltage-gated, sodium (Na+) channels. Unlike Tegretol®, it is not known to cause neutropenia. Its risk to the fetus is not known. It is less likely to cause liver function abnormalities. Like Tegretol®, Trileptal® does increase the metabolism of the estrogen component of birth control pills and therefore the lowest dose of estrogen should be avoided. Women who particularly do not want to become pregnant should consider using a barrier method as well. Also like Tegretol® and maybe more often, Trileptal® can cause a low sodium in the blood. This occurs much more frequently as one gets older and can also be seen more frequently when given in combination with other medications that cause the same side effect. If the dose of Trileptal® gets too high, patients will complain of the usual sedation, dizziness, nausea, and diplopia also associated with Tegretol®. Clearly there are some patients who respond to Trileptal® who do not respond to Tegretol® and this may be in part to decreased side effects for any particular dose.

In epilepsy, Trileptal® is most commonly used for partial onset seizures.

Trileptal® is widely used for neuropathic pains of all types. This includes neuropathic pain on the face (trigeminal neuralgia), diabetes (diabetic neuralgia), and the shingles (post-herpetic neuralgia). As with all pain syndromes, the key is to increase the dose slowly until the pain is relieved or until the patient experiences some toxicity.

Trileptal® is widely used by psychiatrists as a mood stabilizing medication. Here is a nice article on trileptal on Dr. Phelps' web site.