NATION IN BRIEF : MASSACHUSETTS : Seizure Drug Found to Lower Youths’ IQs
- Share via
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
A drug widely used to treat babies who have convulsions during high fevers can at least temporarily lower their IQs and should not be routinely used, researchers have concluded in a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The medicine, phenobarbital, is the drug of choice for infants with so-called febrile seizures. The researchers found a small but measurable decline in the IQs of youngsters who took the medicine for two years.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
