Levomefolate

Levomefolate Brand Names

Deplin | Elfolate | Zervalx

What is Levomefolate

Levomefolate also known as L-methylfolate, is a medical food used as adjunctive therapy in the management of patients with depression or schizophrenia with suboptimal folate concentrations and of patients with schizophrenia and hyperhomocysteinemia.

A medical food is a prescription-only item, prescribed when a patient has special nutrient needs associated with a disease or health condition.

The FDA does not currently have specific safety or efficacy evaluation standards for medical foods, which are not regulated as drugs.

The FDA has assigned a ‘GRAS’ status to the ingredients found in levomefolate medical food products; food products and additives in the U.S. receive the GRAS designation when public consumption is Generally Recognized as Safe.

Levomefolate, the biologically active form of folate, is able to cross the blood brain barrier where it is necessary for the formation of the monoamines serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine.

Levomefolate may be useful in patients with depression who have not fully responded to antidepressant therapy or have documented low concentrations of levomefolate and in those patients with genetic mutations in methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase, the enzyme necessary for the conversion of folic acid to levomefolate.

Levomefolate (Deplin) was granted medical food status in 2006.

Indications

• depression
• schizophrenia

For the management of major depression

as an adjunct to antidepressant therapy in patients with suboptimal levomefolate concentrations

Side Effects

• anaphylactoid reactions
• pruritus
• rash

Monitoring Parameters

• CBC

Contraindications

• bipolar disorder
• breast-feeding
• children
• neoplastic disease
• pernicious anemia
• pregnancy
• vitamin B12 deficiency

Interactions

• Alogliptin; Metformin
• Atropine; Hyoscyamine; Phenobarbital; Scopolamine
• Belladonna Alkaloids; Ergotamine; Phenobarbital
• Canagliflozin; Metformin
• Capecitabine
• Carbamazepine
• Cholestyramine
• Colchicine
• Colchicine; Probenecid
• Colestipol
• Dapagliflozin; Metformin
• Diphenhydramine; Ibuprofen
• Diphenhydramine; Naproxen
• Empagliflozin; Linagliptin; Metformin
• Empagliflozin; Metformin
• Ertugliflozin; Metformin
• Esomeprazole; Naproxen
• Ethanol
• Famotidine; Ibuprofen
• Floxuridine
• Fluorouracil, 5-FU
• Fluoxetine
• Fluoxetine; Olanzapine
• Fosphenytoin
• Glipizide; Metformin
• Glyburide; Metformin
• Hydrochlorothiazide, HCTZ; Triamterene
• Hydrocodone; Ibuprofen
• Ibuprofen
• Ibuprofen; Oxycodone
• Ibuprofen; Pseudoephedrine
• Indomethacin
• Isotretinoin
• Lamotrigine
• Lansoprazole; Naproxen
• Linagliptin; Metformin
• Metformin
• Metformin; Pioglitazone
• Metformin; Repaglinide
• Metformin; Rosiglitazone
• Metformin; Saxagliptin
• Metformin; Sitagliptin
• Methotrexate
• Methylprednisolone
• Naproxen
• Naproxen; Pseudoephedrine
• Naproxen; Sumatriptan
• Nitrofurantoin
• Pentamidine
• Phenobarbital
• Phenytoin
• Primidone
• Pyrimethamine
• Pyrimethamine; Sulfadoxine
• Sulfamethoxazole; Trimethoprim, SMX-TMP, Cotrimoxazole
• Sulfasalazine
• Sulindac
• tobacco
• Triamterene
• Trimethoprim
• Valproic Acid, Divalproex Sodium
• Warfarin