7 best analogs of Carbamazepine

Contents

Rating of the top 7 inexpensive and effective analogues of Carbamazepine according to KP
How to choose an analogue of Carbamazepine
Reviews of doctors about analogues of Carbamazepine
Popular questions and answers
- When can carbamazepine analogues be used?
- What happens if you stop taking Carbamazepine and switch to an analogue?

In general, carbamazepine is a substance that is part of many drugs for the treatment of epilepsy, bipolar affective disorder and neuralgia. There are also drugs called “Carbamazepine”. Ask the expert if he has analogues, how they work and when they are applied

In pharmacies, you can find Carbamazepine from various domestic manufacturers. All drugs are available in tablets with regular and prolonged action, which contain 200 or 400 mg of carbamazepine.

For drugs with prolonged action, the designation “retard” is present in the name. Prolonged action means that after taking the tablet, carbamazepine is released slowly and constantly, so its concentration in the blood remains stable, without sharp drops and rises. Due to this, the drug acts more effectively and is better tolerated. Prolonged dosage forms should be taken less frequently than usual – for example, not 3, but 2 times a day.

Conventional and prolonged preparations of carbamazepine have anticonvulsant, antimanic, antipsychotic effects, reduce pain in neuralgia¹. They are used for the treatment and prevention of:

epilepsy;
psychoses;
diabetic neuropathy with pain syndrome;
trigeminal neuralgia¹.

The dosage and dosage regimen is selected by the attending physician. The drug is contraindicated in people with hypersensitivity to carbamazepine, atrioventricular blockade, porphyria, myelodepression¹. The doctor may prescribe carbamazepine to pregnant and lactating women, but only if the benefit to the mother outweighs the possible risk to the child.

Rating of the top 7 inexpensive and effective analogues of Carbamazepine according to KP

The periodic absence of Carbamazepine in pharmacies makes patients look for a replacement. Together with an expert, we have selected the 7 best analogues and substitutes for Carbamazepine. Analogues contain the same active substance. Carbamazepine substitutes are drugs with a different active ingredient, but a similar therapeutic effect.

Recall that carbamazepine and its analogues are prescription drugs that are taken only for serious indications and as prescribed by a doctor. Substituting one drug for another on your own can be harmful to your health.

1. Tegretol CR

Analogue of Carbamazepine with prolonged action. Tegretol CR release form – tablets with a dosage of 200 and 400 mg². The drug is prescribed for epilepsy, trigeminal and glossopharyngeal neuralgia, alcohol withdrawal, diabetic neuropathy, for the prevention of manic-depressive disorders².

Contraindications for Tegretol are the same as for other analogues of Carbamazepine. The drug can be used to treat children under 6 years of age, but with caution and under medical supervision.

original drug from a well-known manufacturer; has a prolonged effect.

rarely found in pharmacies.

2. Zeptol

The Indian analogue of Carbamazepine has a prolonged action and is available in tablets with a dosage of 200 and 400 mg. Zeptol has an anticonvulsant and antidepressant effect, reduces the frequency and intensity of epileptic seizures, reduces pain in trigeminal neuralgia, and prevents exacerbations in bipolar affective disorder.³. Can be used to treat children over 4 years of age.

Contraindications to the use of Zeptol are standard: anemia, leukopenia, porphyria, hypersensitivity to carbamazepine and other components of the drug, hypersensitivity to tricyclic antidepressants, atrioventricular blockade³.

inexpensive and effective analogue of Carbamazepine; suitable for the treatment of children over 4 years of age.

hard to find for sale.

3. Trileptal

Trileptal is a substitute for Carbamazepine. The drug contains oxcarbazepine, a substance similar in structure and action to carbamazepine. Trileptal has an anticonvulsant effect and helps reduce the frequency and severity of epileptic seizures in adults and children over one month of age.⁴.

It is allowed to use Trileptal during pregnancy, provided that the benefit to the mother outweighs the possible risk to the fetus.

Contraindications for use – hypersensitivity to the components, the period of breastfeeding.

an antiepileptic drug from a well-known manufacturer; suitable for the treatment of children from the second month of life.

is not a complete analogue of Carbamazepine.

4. Vimpat

Vimpat is a substitute for Carbamazepine. The active ingredient of the drug is lacosamide, a substance with anticonvulsant action.⁵. Wimpat is prescribed for adults and adolescents over 16 years of age who have been diagnosed with epilepsy.⁵. Lacosamide helps reduce the frequency of seizures and makes seizures less intense.

Contraindications for use: hypersensitivity to the components of the drug, atrioventricular blockade, pregnancy and lactation.

effective anticonvulsant drug; several dosage options.

high price in the segment; should not be used to treat children under 16 years of age.

5. Lamictal

The active ingredient in Lamictal is lamotrigine, an antiepileptic drug. Lamictal is used to treat epilepsy in adults and children over 3 years of age.⁶. In addition, the drug helps prevent episodes of depression and mania in patients with bipolar affective disorder.⁶. In bipolar disorder, Lamictal is prescribed to patients over 18 years of age.⁶.

The release form of Lamictal is tablets with a dosage of 25, 50 and 100 mg.

Lamictal is contraindicated in case of hypersensitivity to the components and in children under 3 years of age. The drug can be prescribed to pregnant and lactating women, but only if the benefit to the mother is higher than the potential risk to the child.

new generation antiepileptic drug.

can not always replace Carbamazepine; high price in the segment.

6. Finlepsin Retard

Finlepsin Retard contains carbamazepine and is available in 200 and 400 mg tablets.⁷. This is a long-acting drug that provides a stable concentration of the active substance in the blood.

Finlepsin Retard is prescribed for epilepsy, psychotic disorders, trigeminal neuralgia, alcohol withdrawal, tonic convulsions⁷.

Finlepsin Retard is contraindicated in case of individual hypersensitivity to carbamazepine and tricyclic antidepressants, atrioventricular blockade, anemia, leukopenia, porphyria, in children under 6 years of age⁷.

original drug with clinically proven efficacy; prolonged action.

hard to find for sale.

7. Depakine Chrono

This Carbamazepine substitute contains valproic acid. Depakine Chrono has an antiepileptic and sedative effect, helps relieve convulsions and spasms⁸. The drug is used for the treatment and prevention of epileptic seizures, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome in adults and children over 6 years of age.

Release form – tablets with prolonged action and a dosage of 300 and 500 mg.

Depakine should not be taken in case of hypersensitivity to valproic acid, children under 6 years of age, people with acute and chronic hepatitis, severe disorders of the liver and pancreas⁸.

inexpensive antiepileptic drug.

can not always replace Carbamazepine; many side effects.

How to choose an analogue of Carbamazepine

– Currently, many drugs with the active substance carbamazepine are registered – says neurologist Olga Pylaeva. – The drugs that were registered first and have undergone serious clinical trials are called original drugs. These include Finlepsin Retard and Tegretol CR. They are effective and well tolerated by most patients.

A few years after the original drugs enter the market, registration of analogues – copies or generics – begins. They do not undergo such serious and lengthy clinical trials – they are simply compared with the original in several ways. Analogues contain the same active substance carbamazepine, but differ in the set of excipients and production technology. Therefore, some generics may be less effective and safer than the original drugs.

If there is a choice, it is better to give preference to the original drug with prolonged action. There are two of them in the ranking – Tegretol CR and Finlepsin Retard.

Reviews of doctors about analogues of Carbamazepine

– If we talk about the carbamazepine group of drugs, until recently Tegretol CR and Finlepsin Retard were the main drugs in demand on the pharmaceutical market and widely prescribed. These drugs had better rates of efficacy and tolerability compared to other analogues of Carbamazepine, so they were used most often, says neurologist Olga Pylaeva.

Unfortunately, at present there are serious interruptions in the availability of long-acting carbamazepine drugs (Tegretol CR, Finlepsin retard) in pharmacies. Supplies of Finlepsin Retard are not expected in the near future, the manufacturer said. There is hope for Tegretol to appear in pharmacies. The manufacturing company announced that there would be no supplies of Tegretol CR until May-June, but in the future the drug may appear on sale.