Topiramate
Does it work?
It seems to. There's only been one small study so far, but it found that women who took topiramate binged and purged less often.[1]
What is it?
Topiramate is a drug that's usually used to prevent seizures in people who have epilepsy. You take it as a tablet. The brand name is Topamax.
Although it's usually used to treat epilepsy, topiramate also seems to help keep people's moods stable. For people with bulimia, this may make it easier to avoid binging and purging.
How can it help?
One study found that topiramate helped people with bulimia to binge less often.[1] They also felt better about life in general.
The study looked at 60 women with bulimia.[1] They took topiramate or a dummy treatment (a placebo) for 10 weeks. The study found that on average:
- Women who took topiramate binged or purged about five times a week
- Women who were given a placebo binged or purged eight times a week.
When they were asked about how they felt, women who were taking topiramate were more likely say they were healthy, happy and getting on well socially.[1] Topiramate may also help you worry less about your weight and how you look.
Why should it work?
We don't know exactly why topiramate works. The fact that it helps with bulimia was discovered by accident. It happened when women who had epilepsy and bulimia took topiramate to help prevent seizures. They noticed that their bulimia also improved while they were taking it.
Topiramate may work because it helps to stabilise people's moods. If you're feeling calmer or less anxious, you may not feel the need to binge or purge as much.
Can it be harmful?
None of the women in the study got severe side effects.[1] A few women (less than 1 in 10) felt drowsy, felt dizzy, got a headache or felt tingling in their skin. But women who took a placebo got these side effects too, so we can't say whether it was taking topiramate that caused them.
In rare cases, topiramate can cause problems with your eyes.[2] Your doctor will want to keep a check on you for a while after you start taking it to make sure you don't get any problems. If you notice any changes in your vision, see your doctor straight away.
Rarely, topiramate can make people think about suicide.[2] This didn't happen to any of the women in the study we looked at.[1]
References
- Nickel C, Tritt K, Muehlbacher M, et al. Topiramate treatment in bulimia nervosa patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 2005; 38: 295-300.
- British National Formulary. Control of Epilepsy. Section 4.8.1. September 2006. BNF 52. British Medical Association and Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain. Also available at: http://bnf.org (accessed on 26 February 2007).
Glossary
- placebo
- A placebo is a 'pretend' or dummy treatment that contains no active substances. A placebo is often given to half the people taking part in medical research trials, for comparison with the 'real' treatment. It is made to look and taste identical to the drug treatment being tested, so that people in the studies do not know if they are getting the placebo or the 'real' treatment. Researchers often talk about the 'placebo effect'. This is where patients feel better after having a placebo treatment because they expect to feel better. Tests may indicate that they actually are better. In the same way, people can also get side effects after having a placebo treatment. Drug treatments can also have a 'placebo effect'. This is why, to get a true picture of how well a drug works, it is important to compare it against a placebo treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited ("BMJ Group") 2007. All rights reserved
This information does not replace medical advice. If you are concerned you might have a medical problem please ask your Boots pharmacy team in your local Boots store, or see your doctor.
