As of December 2010, Lamictal (Lamotrigine) carries one the FDA’s black-box warnings, warning patients against the extreme side effects the medication has been linked to.  The black-box warning tells patients to be aware of the adverse Lamictal skin reactions: Stevens Johnson Syndrome, DRESS Syndrome, and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis.

Lamictal  is one of the most popular antipsychotic medications prescribed in the United States. It is  primarly used to treat epilepsy, particularly Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, and bipolar type I disorder.  It is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK); the company had successfully created a successful treatment drug for Lennox-Gastaut since the creation of Lithium, which was created almost 30 years earlier.

Despite the success of Lamictal, it has become infamous among the medical community for its association with SJS.  So many cases of Lamictal SJS have been reported that GSK recently updated Lamictal’s label to include a black-box warning to warn against the allergic skin reactions of SJS, DRESS Syndrome, and TEN.  GlaxoSmithKline states that if any of these Lamical rash conditions were to appear, it would be within the first two to eight weeks of starting the medication, or if the medication is suddenly stopped and then resumed at normal dosage.

Medical experts state that not all Lamictal rash incidences will lead to SJS or the other mentioned conditions; only 5% to 10% of patients even develop a rash, but only one in a thousand patients will experience it progressing to SJS.  In fact, there are only 300 cases of SJS diagnoses made per year, in the U.S.  Additionally, patients who have a history to medication sensitivity, or are using more than one prescription drug, are more likely to experience Stevens Johnson Syndrome.

The condition of SJS itself can be quite devastating to the patient, leaving permanent scarring and possible blindness. Recently, a young father from Britain had an extreme allergic reaction from simple over-the-counter ibuprofen, and developed SJS from his reaction.  Luckily, the patient survived from the ordeal, and is currently recovering.

While this man’s reaction was not onset by Lamictal, it is important to note both the severity of his condition, as well as how SJS can occur from almost any medication.  Other medications that have reportedly caused Stevens Johnson Syndrome include Zithromax, Onfi, Tegretol, Amoxicillin, and Dilantin.

Overview of Stevens Johnson Syndrome

SJS is an extreme, allergic skin reaction which is specifically onset by medication.  This condition can vary in severity depending on what stage it is diagnosed and treated, however it is treated as an emergency condition due to how quickly the condition can escalate.  When SJS occurs, it typically starts out with two weeks of flu symptoms, followed by the appearance of reddish or purplish blisters.  SJS could potentially cause blindness, organ damage, amputation, and permanent skin damage.

The brightly-colored blisters is perhaps the most distinguishable of SJS. They can take up to 30% of the body’s surface area, as well as attack the eyes, tongue, mouth, nose, and even vagina or anus.  Due to the nature of these blisters, patients with Stevens Johnson Syndrome are treated as burn patients, due to the similar nature of their injuries, and the often-need for skin grafts.