Prescribing of valproate and oral antiepileptics for women of childbearing age and during pregnancy in Germany between 2010 and 2020

Purpose To examine prescriptions of valproate and oral antiepileptic drugs (OAED) in Germany irrespective of the indication in women in general and particularly in women of childbearing age (13–49 years) and during pregnancy between 2010 and 2020, that is, before, during and after the implementation of the EU risk minimization measures (RMMs). Methods Analysis of claims data. Study population: all women continuously insured with the AOK health insurance fund in the respective observation year (2010–2020) and the previous year. OAED were identified by ATC code N03. Period of pregnancy was calculated based on birth information in claims data. Main outcomes measures: (i) prevalent use of valproate/OAED: number of women with at least one prescription of valproate/OAED per year divided by all women of the study population (rate per 1000 women); (ii) percentage of OAED recipients with at least one valproate prescription during pregnancy (13–49 years) in the respective observation year. Results Prevalence rate/1000 women for valproate use decreased by −31.33% across all age groups (2010–2014: −7.48%; 2014–2018: −16.47%; 2018–2020: −11,17%) with a strong reduction in women 13–49 years between 2014 and 2018 (−28.74%). The rate for OAED across all age groups rose from 33.43/1000 women in 2010 to 41.03/1000 (+22,73%). Valproate use during pregnancy of women with OAED declined from 1.29% in 2010 to 0.59% in 2020 (−54,26%) (2010–2014: −5.14%; 2014–2018: −42.31%; 2018–2020: −16.69%). Conclusion Even if, due to the descriptive nature of the study, no causal relationship can be postulated between the RMMs and the strong decrease in valproate prescriptions, our results are compatible with the hypothesis that the measures have improved drug therapy safety.