Background: Managing epilepsy during pregnancy is a critical challenge as maternal
seizures may have deleterious effects on the fetus. While many patients with epilepsy have
been managed successfully with antiepileptic drugs (AEDs), the potential teratogenicity of
AEDs is a major concern. First-generation AEDs such as valproate have been associated
with at least a 2-fold risk of fetal malformations compared with the general population.
However, recent studies suggest that the newer AEDs given as monotherapy may have a …