Vigabatrin
Overview
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...
that inhibits the catabolism
Catabolism
Catabolism is the set of metabolic pathways that break down molecules into smaller units and release energy. In catabolism, large molecules such as polysaccharides, lipids, nucleic acids and proteins are broken down into smaller units such as monosaccharides, fatty acids, nucleotides, and amino...
of gamma-aminobutyric acid
Gamma-aminobutyric acid
γ-Aminobutyric acid is the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian central nervous system. It plays a role in regulating neuronal excitability throughout the nervous system...
(GABA) by irreversibly inhibiting GABA transaminase. It is an analog
Analog (chemistry)
In chemistry, a structural analog , also known as chemical analog or simply analog, is a compound having a structure similar to that of another one, but differing from it in respect of a certain component. It can differ in one or more atoms, functional groups, or substructures, which are replaced...
of GABA, but it is not a receptor
Receptor (biochemistry)
In biochemistry, a receptor is a molecule found on the surface of a cell, which receives specific chemical signals from neighbouring cells or the wider environment within an organism...
agonist
Agonist
An agonist is a chemical that binds to a receptor of a cell and triggers a response by that cell. Agonists often mimic the action of a naturally occurring substance...
. It is sold under the brand name Sabril.
In Canada, vigabatrin is approved for use as an adjunctive treatment (with other drugs) in treatment resistant 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...
, complex partial seizure
Complex partial seizure
A complex partial seizure is an epileptic seizure that is associated with bilateral cerebral hemisphere involvement and causes impairment of awareness or responsiveness, i.e. loss of consciousness.-Presentation:...
s, secondary generalized seizures, and for monotherapy use in infantile spasms in West syndrome
West syndrome
West syndrome or West's Syndrome is an uncommon to rare epileptic disorder in infants. It is named after the English physician, William James West , who first described it in an article published in The Lancet in 1841. The original case actually described his own son, James Edwin West...
.
As of 2003, vigabatrin is approved in Mexico for the treatment of epilepsy that is not satisfactorily controlled by conventional therapy (adjunctive or monotherapy) or in recently diagnosed patients who have not tried other agents (monotherapy).
Vigabatrin is also indicated for monotherapy use in secondarily generalized tonic-clonic seizure
Tonic-clonic seizure
Tonic–clonic seizures are a type of generalized seizure that affects the entire brain...
s, partial seizures, and in infantile spasms due to West syndrome.
On August 21, 2009, Lundbeck announced that the U.S.
