Abstract

Six cases of convulsive seizures occurring during treatment with viloxazine notified to the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) and two other cases from Japan were reviewed. A critical study of the patient's histories suggests a possible causal connection between drug and seizures in only two of these cases. The occurrence of convulsions is not in keeping with the results of animal experiments and of clinical trials in which epileptic patients were included, both of which suggest that viloxazine does not have epileptogenic properties and may have anticonvulsant actions. A worldwide review of clinical trials in which unwanted effects have been recorded suggests that viloxazine, even if possessing convulsive properties like other anti-depressants, is probably less epileptogenic than conventional tricyclics and is not contraindicated in epileptic patients requiring antidepressant medication.