Lamictal is used as a treatment for both epilepsy and psychiatric conditions, but in rare instances it can result in a damaging and potentially deadly skin condition called Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS).

Lamictal is manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline’s brand name for the drug known generically as lamotrigine It is an anti-epileptic medication approved by the FDA to treat various types of seizures. It’s also approved to treat bipolar I disorder by delaying the time to occurrence of mood episodes.

As mentioned on the FDA-approved labeling for Lamictal, there have been reports of serious rashes associated with Lamictal treatment. Some of these rashes were severe enough to require hospitalization, and there is mention of at least one rash-related death. The reports also include some cases that developed into Stevens Johnson syndrome.

Lamictal SJS

While Stevens Johnson Syndrome poses a systemic threat to the whole body, its trademark symptoms affect the skin. After an initial presentation of symptoms resembling those of the flu, a rash breaks out over the face and trunk.

Blisters form within these areas of rash. Other blisters can also form on the mucous membranes, affecting the eyes, mouth, throat, or genitals. Hair and nails may also fall out.

SJS that progresses to cover at least 30 percent of the body’s surface area is typically referred to as toxic epidermal necrolysis. In TEN, the blisters may coalesce to form large areas of skin that peel away and fall off, exposing the sensitive and vulnerable lower layer of skin.

When TEN ends in death, it’s most often because of an infection that entered the body by way of these exposed areas.

Both SJS and TEN can lead to a variety of dangerous complications. Infections are of particular concern, as the lost layers of skin can lead to secondary skin infections or blood infections. These infections in turn can lead to sepsis, a systemic response that can cause shock and organ failure.

Eye symptoms can lead to scarring or tissue damage that can leave the patient blind. Though rare, damage to the heart, liver, lungs or kidneys may result from inflammation. Damage to the skin can leave areas of permanent scarring or discoloration.

Treatment for both SJS and TEN often requires time-consuming and costly hospitalization. The first step is to stop the cause, which in most cases is a medication like Lamictal.

After that, care addresses the symptoms and prevents infection while the body gets a chance to heal itself. Recovery can take a few days in mild cases or several months in severe cases.

In one case, a young woman from Georgia named Khaliah S. lost up to 90 percent of her skin to SJS caused by lamotrigine (the generic version of Lamictal) that she took to treat bipolar disorder.

Her SJS symptoms began within a month of her starting to take lamotrigine. She went to the emergency room with a rash on her face and the skin on her lips beginning to peel off, but her ER doctors initially misdiagnosed her condition as the flu.

Khaliah eventually spent seven weeks being treated in a burn center – five weeks of which she spent in a medically-induced coma to avoid the pain. Thirteen months after Khaliah became ill, she continued to require ongoing treatment and her eyesight was still impaired.