Lamotrigine, marketed in the US and most of Europe as Lamictal (icon) by GlaxoSmithKline

GlaxoSmithKline

GlaxoSmithKline plc is a global pharmaceutical, biologics, vaccines and consumer healthcare company headquartered in London, United Kingdom...

, is an anticonvulsant

Anticonvulsant

The anticonvulsants are a diverse group of pharmaceuticals used in the treatment of epileptic seizures. Anticonvulsants are also increasingly being used in the treatment of bipolar disorder, since many seem to act as mood stabilizers, and in the treatment of neuropathic pain. The goal of an...

 drug used in the treatment of epilepsy

Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...

 and bipolar disorder

Bipolar disorder

Bipolar disorder or bipolar affective disorder, historically known as manic–depressive disorder, is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a category of mood disorders defined by the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated energy levels, cognition, and mood with or without one or...

. It is also used as an adjunct in treating depression, though this is considered off-label usage. For epilepsy, it is used to treat partial seizures, primary and secondary tonic-clonic seizure

Tonic-clonic seizure

Tonic–clonic seizures are a type of generalized seizure that affects the entire brain...

s, and seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome

Lennox-Gastaut syndrome

Lennox–Gastaut syndrome , also known as Lennox syndrome, is a difficult-to-treat form of childhood-onset epilepsy that most often appears between the second and sixth year of life, and is characterized by frequent seizures and different seizure types; it is often accompanied by developmental delay...

. Like many other anticonvulsant medications, Lamotrigine also seems to act as an effective mood stabilizer

Mood stabilizer

A mood stabilizer is a psychiatric medication used to treat mood disorders characterized by intense and sustained mood shifts, typically bipolar disorder.-Uses:...

, and in fact has been the only U.S.