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WASHINGTON — Treatment with certain epilepsy drugs may expose some Asian patients to serious skin reactions, federal health officials warned Monday.
The Food and Drug Administration said it is investigating whether medications such as Dilantin, Phenytek and Cerebyx, used to control epileptic seizures, can lead to severe skin blisters and bleeding for some Asian patients.
Patients who test positive for the gene HLA-B*1502 appear to be at increased risk of developing the skin problems, preliminary data indicate. About 10 percent to 15 percent of patients from parts of China, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines might carry the gene.
