Thaindian News

The medication topiramate may not only improve drinking problems in people with alcohol dependence, but boost their quality of life according to the search.

Topiramate (Topamax) is an anti-seizure drug that has also been shown to reduce drinking in alcoholics , it effects on certain brain chemicals thought to be involved in alcohol dependence.

Whether treatment with the drug can also improve alcoholics’ physical and mental well-being,yet it has been unclear.

Topiramate therapy was also associated with a drop in alcohol-related obsessions and compulsions, and with improvements in psychological well-being and quality of life.

Such improvements in overall well-being, could reduce the risk of alcoholic relapse.

The drug did have side effects in some patients ; appetite loss and difficulty concentrating.

The improvements in physical and mental well-being are promising, Johnson’s team concludes.

“Our findings,” they write, “demonstrate that topiramate appears to be a generally effective treatment for alcohol dependence because it improves not only the ’symptom’ of drinking but also its physical and psychosocial (consequences).”