A Rare Occurrence of Isolated Neutropenia with Valproic Acid: a Case Report

Valproic acid, a conventional antiepileptic drug, is also used in the treatment of bipolar disorder, to provide rapid stabilization of the patient. Although thrombocytopenia is a potential threat, occurrence of suppression of the other cell lines in the bone marrow is also found rarely. Here in this study we report a case of a 28 year old female treated with valproic acid and risperidone for bipolar disorder, who developed isolated neutropenia within 6 months of commencement of therapy that got reversed soon after termination of valproic acid therapy. This finding lays further emphasis on regular monitoring of all cell lines in blood for better management and to prevent any serious bone marrow toxicity in the patients.