A link between the brain condition cerebellar atrophy and Dilantin, the popular anticonvulsant, has emerged in recent years with a growing number of studies.

Dilantin Basics

Dilantin is an anticonvulsant medication commonly used to treat epilepsy across the United States. During an epileptic seizure, the brain fires neurons much more rapidly than usual. Dilantin’s approach to treat epilepsy is to stop seizures in their early stages, preventing neurons from firing as rapidly as they do during a seizure.

Dilantin (also known by its generic name, phenytoin) is one of the most widely used anticonvulsant drugs currently available on the market. Despite its popularity, Dilantin has been linked with serious Dilantin side effects, some of which may be long-lasting or even permanent. Indeed, the most serious of potential dangerous links is between cerebellar atrophy and Dilantin, a condition that causes a patient’s brain tissue to degenerate over time.

Cerebellar Atrophy and Dilantin

The neurological condition essentially causes brain tissue in the cerebellum (at the back of the skull) to degenerate progressively, losing neurons. Loss of cerebellum tissue can have a devastating effect on a patient’s physical capabilities, as the cerebellum is responsible for a number of basic functions, including speech, coordination posture, and balance.

As a case of cerebellar atrophy worsens, a patient may suffer from increasingly unstable eye movements, uncontrollable body movements, body tremors, and balance problems. These cerebellar atrophy side effects can impede a patient’s ability to go about their daily life.

A study, published in Seizure European Journal of Epilepsy looked at the connection between cerebellar atrophy and Dilantin, and found that the length of time a patient uses Dilantin drastically affects how likely they are to subsequently develop extreme Dilantin neurological side effects like cerebellar atrophy. In this way, a long-term Dilantin patient is more likely to develop cerebellar atrophy than a patient who has only used Dilantin for a short time. Similarly, if a patient takes a higher dosage of Dilantin, they are more likely to develop serious Dilantin side effects.

While a patient is more likely to suffer from cerebellar atrophy symptoms after taking larger doses of Dilantin for a longer period of time, the connection between cerebellar atrophy and Dilantin has also been reported from short-term users taking a lower dosage.

For some patients, all they need to do to alleviate these symptoms is to simply stop taking Dilantin. Unfortunately, other patients who have been diagnosed with cerebellar atrophy may be stuck with these symptoms as a permanent part of their lives.

Filing a Lawsuit Over Cerebellar Atrophy and Dilantin

The link between cerebellar atrophy and Dilantin is not the only side effect users of the anticonvulsant should be worried about. Dilantin has also been connected with Stevens Johnson syndrome, a life-threatening skin condition, that has led many patients to file lawsuits against Pfizer Inc., the drug’s manufacturer.

If you have suffered from cerebellar atrophy and Dilantin is the cause, you may be able to file a lawsuit of your own against Pfizer. While filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by cerebellar atrophy and its symptoms or other serious side effects, it may be able to help compensate for the financial burden caused by medical expenses and lost wages.