Lamotrigine prescribing across the NHS.
Lamotrigine does two jobs, epilepsy and bipolar maintenance, and grows steadily at both: 4.4m items a year. Prescribing stays deliberately conservative around it, because for epilepsy patients consistency of supply matters as much as the molecule.
The NHS in England dispensed 4,441,349 prescription items of Lamotrigine in the 12 months to May 2026, across primary care and hospitals.
Spending on Lamotrigine over those 12 months was £31.9m at net ingredient cost, the list price of what was dispensed before any discounts.
Items were up 7.1% on the previous 12 months.
96% of Lamotrigine volume moved through primary care and 4% through hospital pharmacies.
Lamotrigine ranks #3 of 30 chemical substances in Control of epilepsy (BNF 4.8.1), by items dispensed.
Among Integrated Care Boards, NHS North East and North Cumbria ICB dispensed the highest volume of Lamotrigine.
Source: NHS Business Services Authority open data (English Prescribing Data and SCMD), OGL v3.0. Items count prescriptions dispensed, not patients treated.
| Month | Items | Spend (NIC) |
|---|---|---|
| May 2026 | 372,179 | £2.9m |
| April 2026 | 380,714 | £3.0m |
| March 2026 | 383,640 | £3.1m |
| February 2026 | 347,875 | £2.7m |
| January 2026 | 377,636 | £2.5m |
| December 2025 | 393,513 | £2.7m |
| November 2025 | 353,695 | £2.4m |
| October 2025 | 380,608 | £2.5m |
| September 2025 | 369,662 | £2.5m |
| August 2025 | 348,785 | £2.4m |
| July 2025 | 379,389 | £2.6m |
| June 2025 | 353,653 | £2.6m |
The same series as the chart, most recent month first. The full monthly history, as CSV, sits behind Apply.
13.4% of its class.
Lamotrigine ranks #3 of 30 chemical substances in Control of epilepsy (BNF 4.8.1), by items dispensed in May 2026. The full class league, who's gaining, and the month-by-month share movement sit behind Apply.
Average items by calendar month across the full history, indexed to the annual mean.
Lamotrigine across all 36 ICBs.
Every Integrated Care Board in England, shaded by how much lamotrigine its GPs dispense per head of population. Hover an ICB to name it. The ranked figures for all 36 ICBs, and the drill-down to practice level, are in the full report.
Darker shading marks where Lamotrigine is dispensed most per head of population. Exact figures for every ICB, and the drill-down to practice level, are in the full report.
Zoomed out to the 7 NHS regions.
The same 12 months rolled up to NHS England's seven regions, ranked by intensity.
The teaser view.
Three rows each. The full 36-ICB view, every prescribing organisation, every strength and the hospital picture sit below the fold, behind Apply.
- 1 NHS North East and North Cumbria ICB 383k
- 2 NHS Greater Manchester ICB 271k
- 3 NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB 245k
- – + 33 more. Unlock the full 36-ICB table. Unlock →
- 1 NHS North East London ICB +12.5%
- 2 NHS Black Country ICB +10.6%
- 3 NHS West and North London ICB +10.1%
- – + 33 more. Unlock every ICB, ranked. Unlock →
- 1 Lamotrigine 100mg tablets 31%
- 2 Lamotrigine 50mg tablets 28%
- 3 Lamotrigine 25mg tablets 19%
- – + 3 more. Unlock every strength and pack. Unlock →
Split of items across NHSBSA primary care and SCMD hospital dispensing.
Prescribing by deprivation.
Items per 1,000 registered patients by deprivation decile (1 = most deprived), practice deprivation weighted by where each practice's patients live. Read the shape rather than the absolute level: the most and least deprived deciles cover far fewer practices, and age structure drives much of the gradient.
The devolved nations.
| Nation | Items · 12 months | Data to |
|---|---|---|
| England | 4.4m | May 2026 |
| Northern Ireland | 155k | May 2026 |
| Scotland | 379k | April 2026 |
| Wales | 267k | April 2026 |
Each nation publishes its own community prescribing data, with different coding and list rules, so read these per-nation rather than as an exact UK total. Sources: NHSBSA (England), Public Health Scotland.
What open data won't tell you about lamotrigine.
The epilepsy-psychiatry split is invisible in this data, and brand continuity, which matters clinically for epilepsy, disappears inside an aggregated chemical line.
Asked and answered.
Is lamotrigine prescribing rising or falling in the NHS?
Rising. England dispensed 4,441,349 items of Lamotrigine in the 12 months to May 2026, up 7.1% on the previous 12 months. Items count prescriptions dispensed, not patients treated, so the change can reflect dose and duration shifts as well as patient numbers.
How much does the NHS spend on lamotrigine?
£31.9m at net ingredient cost in the 12 months to May 2026. Net ingredient cost is the list price of the medicine before discounts and rebates; the NHS's final bill, especially for hospital medicines, is usually lower.
Where in England is lamotrigine prescribed most?
By raw volume, NHS North East and North Cumbria ICB dispensed the most lamotrigine in the last 12 months. Raw volume favours the biggest populations; the map on this page shades every ICB by items per head to correct for that.
How up to date is this data?
This page runs to May 2026, the most recent NHSBSA release. Prescribing data publishes roughly six to eight weeks in arrears, and DoseTrend refreshes within 48 hours of each monthly release.
The full breakdown.
Every ICB, every prescribing organisation, every strength, the hospital view, and the monthly briefing PDF. Sample rows shown below with the numbers obscured.
Related pages.
See the full molecule directory, or read about the data and pricing.
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