Effects of carbamazepine on action potentials and calcium currents in rat spinal ganglion cells in vitro.

The effects of carbamazepine (CBZ) on action potentials and calcium currents in cultured rat sensory spinal ganglion cells were investigated. CBZ was found to reversibly suppress the calcium-dependent components of action potentials and to reduce the amplitude of the after-hyperpolarizations, while the rising phase and the peak amplitude were hardly changed. Furthermore, CBZ caused a marked reduction in the calcium currents, which in some cells was reversible. The present findings confirm that CBZ has calcium-antagonistic properties.