[Epilepsy and disorders of reproduction]

Epilepsy in women is relatively often linked with reproductive disorders which include polycystic ovarian syndrome, hypothalamic amenorrhea and functional hyperprolactinaemia. These disorders have a significant share in a high incidence of infertility and premature menopause while the polycystic ovarian syndrome, also manifested by the metabolic syndrome, places the affected patients at risk of later consequences such as type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases including arterial hypertension, gynaecological neoplasias (the breast and the endometrium), and in the case of pregnancy, a higher incidence of pregnancy induced hypertension. Apart from epilepsy as such, also antiepileptic treatment may have negative impact on the female's reproductive functions. In many cases, adverse effects of treatment complicate the patient's life more than the attacks alone. Medication induced weight gain might be responsible for different endocrine diseases (menstruation disorders, polycystic ovarian syndrome, hyperandrogenism). The article analyses the influence of side effects of the different antiepileptic drugs on the development of metabolic and endocrine anomalies. The role of antiepileptic drugs in the development of reproductive and endocrine disorders was first described by Isojarvim in 1993. A high incidence of polycystic ovarian syndrome and/or hyperandrogenism (43%) was observed in women taking valproat, which was clearly higher than in women taking other antiepileptics. Results reported in literature are rather controversial. The article gives an overview of current knowledge with respect to the influence of epilepsy and antiepileptics on the incidence ofpolycystic ovarian syndrome, which is considerably higher in women with epilepsy (10-25%) than in the unaffected population (4-7%), and of the related metabolic syndrome. The article concludes with recommendations for clinical practice in the treatment of epilepsy in women in reproductive age.