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Sodium valproate

Medication anticonvulsant / mood stabiliser mental health
Aka: valproate, valproic acid, Epilim
Brands seen in Singapore: Epilim, Epilim Chrono, Valparin XR, Valproate-AFT, Sodium Valproate Aguettant
Not medical advice. Check with your doctor or pharmacist before you start, stop or change the timing of anything you take.
How to use
What it’s for
HealthHub: some types of seizures; bipolar mood swings
When to take
HealthHub: with or after food; tablets swallowed whole
Take with
HealthHub: food or water, not carbonated drinks
Pros & cons
Pros
  • NHS: most adults and children can take it for epilepsy
  • HealthHub: chrono tablets release it slowly
  • Register: tablets, syrup and injection in SG
Cons
  • NHS: not recommended in pregnancy — birth defects
  • HealthHub: weight gain, tremor, finer hair texture
  • HealthHub: rare sjs/ten skin reactions, liver harm
Sources
  1. HSA — Listing of Registered Therapeutic Products (data.gov.sg d_767279312753558cbf19d48344577084); cached at /tmp/hsa_all.json and filtered locally (not re-fetched), 11 valproate rows · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “EPILIM 200 TABLET SIN05690P · EPILIM CHRONO TABLET 500 mg SIN08112P · EPILIM SYRUP 200 mg/5 ml SIN05434P · VALPARIN XR 500 SIN12559P · VALPROATE-AFT injection SIN16642P — all 11 rows “Prescription Only”, ATC N03AG01”
  2. HealthHub (Pharmaceutical Society of Singapore / MOH) — Sodium valproate: what is this medication for · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Sodium valproate is used to control some types of seizures (commonly known as fits). It can also be used as a mood stabilizer to help reduce mood swings in a condition known as bipolar disorder.”
  3. HealthHub — Sodium valproate: how should I take or use this medication · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “You should take this medication with or after food. If you are taking the controlled-release tablet (Chrono), swallow the tablet whole or halved, do not chew or crush … do not mix the medication with any carbonated drink.”
  4. HealthHub — Sodium valproate: what precautions should I take · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Inform your healthcare professionals if you have the following medical conditions before starting on sodium valproate: Liver problems; Kidney problems; Pancreas problems; Blood related disease; Drug allergies”
  5. HealthHub — Sodium valproate: common side effects · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Dizziness or feeling lightheaded … Drowsiness … Change in hair texture to finer at the beginning when you start to use the medicine … Increase in appetite, weight gain … Slight and fine tremors of fingers and hands”
  6. HealthHub — Sodium valproate: rare but serious side effects · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Blistering, peeling, red skin rash due to Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) or toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) … Liver problems: Dark-coloured urine or light-coloured stools, yellowing of your eyes or skin”
  7. HealthHub — Sodium valproate: what food or medication should I avoid · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Avoid drinking alcohol while taking this medication as it can cause excessive drowsiness. There are several medicines that affect the level of this medication in your body.”
  8. NHS medicines A–Z — Sodium valproate: who can and cannot take it (reviewed 11 March 2025) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Most adults can take sodium valproate to treat epilepsy or bipolar disorder or help prevent migraine. Most children can take sodium valproate to treat epilepsy.”
  9. NHS medicines A–Z — Sodium valproate: pregnancy, breastfeeding and fertility · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Sodium valproate is not recommended in pregnancy, as it can cause birth defects and problems with your child's learning and behaviour … your doctor will enrol you on Prevent, the valproate pregnancy prevention programme.”
  10. NHS medicines A–Z — Sodium valproate: taking it with other medicines and herbal supplements · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “any other medicines for epilepsy such as carbamazepine … warfarin … aspirin … cimetidine … ritonavir … erythromycin … venlafaxine, quetiapine or diazepam … cholestyramine … mefloquine or chloroquine”
  11. Singapore National Drug Formulary — EPILIM CHRONO TABLET 500 mg [SIN08112P], Posology (epilepsy, adults) · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Dosage should start at 600mg daily increasing by 200mg at three-day intervals until control is achieved. This is generally within the dosage range 1000mg to 2000mg per day … the dose may be further increased to 2500mg per day.”
  12. Singapore National Drug Formulary — EPILIM CHRONO [SIN08112P], Contra-indications · read 2026-08-27
    what it says
    “Active liver disease; Personal or family history of severe hepatic dysfunction, especially drug related; Hypersensitivity to sodium valproate; Porphyria; Known urea cycle disorders”
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Updated 2026-08-29. Every line above traces to a numbered source. Kozen-X is not a medical device and does not give medical advice. It lists what published sources have written down — nothing more. A pair not listed is unrecorded, not cleared. Before you start, stop or re-time anything, talk to your doctor or pharmacist.