Carbamate anticonvulsants

What are Carbamate anticonvulsants?

Carbamate anticonvulsant agents are newer antiepileptic drugs whose exact mechanism of action is uncertain. It has some inhibitory effect at the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors and slightly potentiates gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) activity. It has a broad spectrum of activity but is only used in patients who are unresponsive to other anticonvulsant drugs, as it can cause severe reactions such as aplastic anemia, hepatitis and liver failure.

Other examples are meprobamate and its derivatives like carisoprodol, felbamate, mebutamate, phenprobamate, and tybamate, a class of anxiolytic and muscle relaxant drugs widely used in the 1960s before the rise of benzodiazepines, and still used nowadays in some cases.

Aldicarb, carbaryl, propoxur, oxamyl and terbucarb are carbamates. Although these pesticides differ chemically, they act similarly. When applied to crops or directly to the soil as systemic insecticides, organophosphates and carbamates generally persist from only a few hours to several months.

Description. Carbonic anhydrase inhibitors are used to treat glaucoma. Acetazolamide is also used as an anticonvulsant to control certain seizures in the treatment of epilepsy.

Aromatic anticonvulsants are first- line antiepileptic drugs and emotional stabilizers. Aromatic antiepileptic drugs including carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, phenytoin sodium, and lamotrigine are commonly used, mainly for the treatment of epilepsy and mania, but also for schizo- phrenia and trigeminal neuralgia.

Organophosphates are organic compounds that contain phosphorus, while carbamates are salts or esters of carbamic acid. In different ways, organophosphates and carbamates tend to cause the nervous system to stop working properly.