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Objective: To determine effectiveness and adverse effects of anticonvulsant drugs in management of pain.

Design: Systematic review of randomised controlled trials of anticonvulsants for acute, chronic, or cancer pain identified by using Medline, by hand searching, by searching reference lists, and by contacting investigators.

Subjects: Between 1966 and February 1994, 37 reports were found; 20 reports, of four anticonvulsants, were eligible.

Main outcome measures: Numbers needed to treat were calculated for effectiveness, adverse effects, and drug related withdrawal from study.

Results: The only placebo controlled study in acute pain found no analgesic effect of sodium valproate. For treating trigeminal neuralgia, carbamazepine had a combined number needed to treat of 2.6 for effectiveness, 3.4 for adverse effects, and 24 for severe effects (withdrawal from study). For treating diabetic neuropathy …