Effect of long-term carbamazepine therapy on serum lipids, vitamin B12 and folic acid levels in children

Serum triglycerides, total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLD-LC), vitamin B-12 and folic acid levels were studied in 16 children with epilepsy who had been receiving carbamazepine (CBZ), and in 16 healthy children. Our purpose was to determine whether there was any effect of CBZ therapy on serum lipids, vitamin B-12 and folic acid levels. Age ranged from 5 to 19 years (12.25 +/- 3.79 years) and 5.5 to 18 years (12.16 +/- 3.53 years) in the study and control groups, respectively. The duration of CBZ therapy in the patients was between 1 and 4.5 years (3.01 +/- 1.04 years). Serum CBZ level varied between 4 and 12 mug/ml (6.26 +/- 2.07 mug/ml). There was no statistically significant difference in serum triglycerides, TC, HDL-C, LDL-C, VLDL-C or vitamin B-12. However, mean folic acid level was found to be lower in the study group than that of the control group (p <0.05). Nonetheless, serum folic acid levels were within the normal range in all patients. Our study demonstrated that CBZ therapy does not affect serum lipids, vitamin B-12 and folic acid levels, and may safely be used with regard to these parameters in children.