Neurontin Warnings & Precautions

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Neurontin - Warnings & Precautions [Gabapentin]

Pregnancy

Pregnancy Category C:

Gabapentin has been shown to be fetotoxic in rodents, causing delayed ossification of several bones in the skull, vertebrae, forelimbs, and hindlimbs. These effects occurred when pregnant mice received oral doses of 1000 or 3000 mg/ kg/ day during the period of organogenesis, or approximately 1 to 4 times the maximum dose of 3600 mg/ day given to epileptic patients on a mg/ m 2 basis. The no-effect level was 500 mg/ kg/ day or approximately ˝ of the human dose on a mg/ m 2 basis.

When rats were dosed prior to and during mating, and throughout gestation, pups from all dose groups (500, 1000 and 2000 mg/ kg/ day) were affected. These doses are equivalent to less than approximately 1 to 5 times the maximum human dose on a mg/ m 2 basis. There was an increased incidence of hydroureter and/ or hydronephrosis in rats in a study of fertility and general reproductive performance at 2000 mg/ kg/ day with no effect at 1000 mg/ kg/ day, in a teratology study at 1500 mg/ kg/ day with no effect at 300 mg/ kg/ day, and in a perinatal and postnatal study at all doses studied (500, 1000 and 2000 mg/ kg/ day). The doses at which the effects occurred are approximately 1 to 5 times the maximum human dose of 3600 mg/ day on a mg/ m 2 basis; the no-effect doses were approximately 3 times (Fertility and General reproductive Performance study) and approximately equal to (Teratogenicity study) the maximum human dose on a mg/ m 2 basis.

Other than hydroureter and hydronephrosis, the etiologies of which are unclear, the incidence of malformations was not increased compared to controls in offspring of mice, rats, or rabbits given doses up to 50 times (mice), 30 times (rats), and 25 times (rabbits) the human daily dose on a mg/ kg basis, or 4 times (mice), 5 times (rats), or 8 times (rabbits) the human daily dose on a mg/ m 2 basis.

In a teratology study in rabbits, an increased incidence of postimplantation fetal loss occurred in dams exposed to 60, 300, and 1500 mg/ kg/ day, or less than approximately ź to 8 times the maximum human dose on a mg/ m 2 basis. There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. This drug should be used during pregnancy only if the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the fetus.

Use in Nursing Mothers

Gabapentin is secreted into human milk following oral administration. A nursed infant could be exposed to a maximum dose of approximately 1 mg/ kg/ day of gabapentin. Because the effect on the nursing infant is unknown, Neurontin Ž should be used in women who are nursing only if the benefits clearly outweigh the risks.

Pediatric Use

Safety and effectiveness of Neurontin Ž (gabapentin) in the management of postherpetic neuralgia in pediatric patients have not been established.

Effectiveness as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures in pediatric patients below the age of 3 years has not been established (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, Clinical Studies).

Geriatric Use

The total number of patients treated with Neurontin Ž in controlled clinical trials in patients with postherpetic neuralgia was 336, of which 102 (30%) were 65 to 74 years of age, and 168 (50%) were 75 years of age and older. There was a larger treatment effect in patients 75 years of age and older compared with younger patients who received the same dosage. Since gabapentin is almost exclusively eliminated by renal excretion, the larger treatment effect observed in patients 75 years may be a consequence of increased gabapentin exposure for a given dose that results from an age-related decrease in renal function. However, other factors cannot be excluded.

The types and incidence of adverse events were similar across age groups except for peripheral edema and ataxia, which tended to increase in incidence with age. Clinical studies of Neurontin Ž in epilepsy did not include sufficient numbers of subjects aged 65 and over to determine whether they responded differently from younger subjects. Other reportedclinical experience has not identified differences in responses between the elderly and younger patients. In general, dose selection for an elderly patient should be cautious, usually starting at the low end of the dosing range, reflecting the greater frequency of decreased hepatic, renal, or cardiac function, and of concomitant disease or other drug therapy.

This drug is known to be substantially excreted by the kidney, and the risk of toxic reactions to this drug may be greater in patients with impaired renal function. Because elderly patients are more likely to have decreased renal function, care should be taken in dose selection, and dose should be adjusted based on creatinine clearance values in these patients (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY, ADVERSE REACTIONS, and DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION sections).