Compare Tegretol vs. Lamictal
Head-to-head comparisons of medication uses, side effects, ratings, and more.
Prevents seizures, stabilizes mood, and relieves nerve pain.
Tegretol (Carbamazepine) is useful for preventing seizures and relieving certain types of nerve pain, but interacts with many drugs.
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3.3/ 5 average rating with 61 reviewsforTegretol
Prevents seizures and stabilizes mood.
Lamictal (Lamotrigine) is most useful for treating severe seizure disorders, and for bipolar disorder with more depression symptoms than manic symptoms. Just be careful to increase your dose slowly to avoid skin rash.
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3.7/ 5 average rating with 184 reviewsforLamictal
Upsides
- Lowers the frequency of seizures, especially for people with tonic-clonic and partial seizures.
- First-line option for trigeminal neuralgia (nerve pain involving the face, head, and neck), and can relieve other types of nerve pain.
- May be helpful in stabilizing mood for people with bipolar disorder.
- Effective at lowering the frequency of seizures in people with epilepsy or Lennox-Gestaut syndrome. Typically used together with other medications for severe seizure disorders.
- Works best for partial, tonic-clonic, and absence seizures.
- A first-line treatment for bipolar disorder. Effective long-term treatment for stabilizing mood. Prevents both depressive and manic episodes, but the effect is greater for preventing depression.
- Doesn't require routine blood tests.
Downsides
- Interacts with many other medicines and supplements.
- Higher risk of skin reactions compared to other antiepileptic medicines, ranging from mild to life-threatening rash.
- Can cause blurry vision, dizziness, and upset stomach.
- Not safe to use if you're pregnant.
- Requires routine blood tests to see how the medicine is affecting your body.
- Can cause double vision, dizziness, sleepiness, and headache.
- Has the risk of a rare but life-threatening rash.
- Can make hormonal birth control less effective.
- Might be less effective than other medicines for treating manic episodes (acute mania) in people with bipolar disorder.
Used for
Dosage forms
- Pill
- Extended release
- Chewable tablet
- Oral suspension
- Pill
- Extended release
- Chewable tablet
- Dissolving tablet
Price
Lowest price
$37.48
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$177.03
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Reviews
61 reviews so far
56%
saidit'sworth it
43%
saiditworked well
23%
saidit'sa big hassle
Have you used Tegretol (Carbamazepine)?
Leave a review184 reviews so far
66%
saidit'sworth it
58%
saiditworked well
18%
saidit'sa big hassle
Have you used Lamictal (Lamotrigine)?
Leave a reviewSide effects
18possible side effects
- Dizziness44%
- Somnolence32%
- Nausea28%
- Vomiting18%
- Ataxia15%
- Constipation10%
- Pruritus8%
- Dry Mouth8%
- Asthenia8%
- Rash7%
- Blurred vision6%
- Speech Disorder6%
- Hypertension3%
- Tremor3%
- Paresthesia2%
- Thinking abnormal2%
- Twitching2%
- Vertigo2%
36possible side effects
- Dizziness38%
- Headache28%
- Diplopia28%
- Ataxia22%
- Nausea19%
- Blurred vision16%
- Somnolence14%
- Rhinitis14%
- Pharyngitis10%
- Rash10%
- Vomiting9%
- Cough increased8%
- Flu syndrome7%
- Dysmenorrhea7%
- Fever6%
- Diarrhea6%
- Incoordination6%
- Insomnia6%
- Abdominal pain5%
- Dyspepsia5%
- Constipation4%
- Tremor4%
- Depression4%
- Anxiety4%
- Vaginitis4%
- Convulsion3%
- Irritability3%
- Speech disorder3%
- Pruritus3%
- Vision abnormality3%
- Neck pain2%
- Reaction aggravated (seizure exacerbation)2%
- Anorexia2%
- Arthralgia2%
- Concentration disturbance2%
- Amenorrhea2%
Risks and risk factors
- Serious skin rash
- People also taking Depakote
- Asian ancestry
- Blood disorders
- Suicidal thoughts or behavior
- History of depression
- Serious allergic reactions
- European, Chinese, or Japanese ancestry
- Pregnancy
- Mental changes due to low sodium
- Age 65 years or older
- Withdrawal seizures
- Stopping Tegretol (Carbamazepine) suddenly
- Suicidal thoughts or behavior
- History of depression
- Serious skin rash
- People also taking Depakote
- Taking more than the prescribed dose
- Increasing the dose too quickly
- Serious allergic reactions
- Blood disorders
- Meningitis
- Interactions with birth control pills
- Taking birth control pills
- Withdrawal seizures
- Stopping Lamictal (Lamotrigine) suddenly