The active substance in Depakine, which causes malformations and developmental problems in the fetus, could also have harmful consequences for the next generation.
The association of victims Apesac is worried in a press release published on Monday about "the transgenerational impact of Dépakine".
As adults, people exposed to this substance (valproate) in their mother's womb could, according to the organization, have children themselves victims of malformations or delays.
Since @Sante_Gouv does not want to help the #victims of # Dépakine to study the transgenerational impact of #Valproate I publish the data of the families of @ apesac1 I had proposed them to the health authorities who despised them by excluding its representatives @SocBirthDefects pic. twitter.com/fyA5rkwCUj
- Marine Martin (@_MarineMartin) December 6, 2021
A disturbing study
Apesac and its founder, Marine Martin, have been warning for several years about this risk of transmission between generations.
To support these claims, Apesac carried out a study by interviewing 108 members of the association who had been exposed to valproate in utero (85 women and 23 men).
These 108 adults had a total of 187 children.
Of these 187 children, who themselves have not been exposed to valproate, nearly a quarter (23) have malformations (hands or feet, heart, kidneys, etc.) and nearly half (88) have neurodevelopmental disorders (autism , psychomotor problems, attention deficit ...), some combining both.
Renowned epidemiologist Catherine Hill, who has worked on valproate for several years, participated in the study, which was published in a medical journal, Birth Defects Research.
"This contempt for the victims is unbearable"
Despite the limits of this work, in particular the fact that they are based on declarations and not on proven diagnoses, their results show "the need for studies on the transgenerational impact of Depakine". "So far, nothing has been done, the data collected by Apesac have been scorned by the health authorities", deplores the association. “This contempt for the victims is unbearable,” adds Marie Martin, the main whistleblower on the Dépakine.
This drug taken since childhood to treat his epilepsy caused serious neurological sequelae in her son born in 2002, and motor coordination difficulties in her daughter, born in 1999. Sodium valproate has been marketed since 1967 by the Sanofi laboratory under the brands Dépakine (for patients with epilepsy), Dépakote and Dépamide (for bipolar patients), as well as under generic brands.
This molecule is responsible for malformations in 2,150 to 4,100 children and neurodevelopmental disorders in 16,600 to 30,400 children, according to estimates from the Health Insurance and the Medicines Agency (ANSM).
Accused by families of victims of having delayed in informing about the risks, Sanofi was indicted in 2020 for “involuntary homicides” in the criminal investigation into this case.
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