What the FDA labels say about taking them together
Carbamazepine and levonorgestrel
Carbamazepine's FDA label of August 20, 2026 names levonorgestrel in its drug interactions section; the levonorgestrel labels PlainMeds reads (4) do not name carbamazepine. The carbamazepine label: “Concomitant use of Tegretol with hormonal contraceptive products may render the contraceptives less effective because the plasma concentrations of the hormones may be decreased.”
Check it at the source: the carbamazepine FDA label on DailyMed (effective August 20, 2026, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation); the levonorgestrel FDA label on DailyMed (effective January 31, 2023, Foundation Consumer Healthcare LLC).
What does the carbamazepine label say about levonorgestrel?
Carbamazepine label, drug interactionsConcomitant use of Tegretol with hormonal contraceptive products (e.g., oral, and levonorgestrel subdermal implant contraceptives) may render the contraceptives less effective because the plasma concentrations of the hormones may be decreased.
Carbatrol label (Takeda Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., August 17, 2026), drug interactions… triazolam, trazodone (4), tricyclic antidepressants (e.g., imipramine, amitriptyline, nortriptyline), valproate, warfarin (5), ziprasidone, and zonisamide. (2) Concomitant use of Carbatrol with hormonal contraceptive products (e.g., oral and levonorgestrel subdermal implant contraceptives) may render the contraceptives less effective because the plasma concentrations of the hormones may be decreased.
Source: FDA drug label (Carbatrol, NDA020712), Takeda Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., effective August 17, 2026 (SPL set bc03e499-5bac-4293-bff4-6864153a624d), via openFDA
Source: FDA drug label (Tegretol), Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, effective August 20, 2026 (SPL set 8d409411-aa9f-4f3a-a52c-fbcb0c3ec053), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What does the levonorgestrel label say about carbamazepine?
Levonorgestrel's label (effective January 31, 2023) and its 3 other brand-application labels do not name carbamazepine in these sections. A label lists what its studies and reports found; it is not a complete list.
Source: FDA drug label (Plan B One-Step), Foundation Consumer Healthcare LLC, effective January 31, 2023 (SPL set 6ce6b40e-14ac-47bd-a648-ddf9e452e559), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
These are the labels' own sentences. PlainMeds does not grade interactions; a pharmacist or prescriber can say what they mean for one person's medicines.
Both medicines on the record
| Carbamazepine | Levonorgestrel | |
|---|---|---|
| Labeled for | Bipolar disorder, Seizures and epilepsy | Birth control |
| Boxed warning | Yes | No |
| Pharmacy cost (NADAC) | $0.119 per tablet 200 mg tablet | $6.33 per tablet 1.5 mg tablet |
| Shortage now | A presentation being discontinued | No current entry |
Source: FDA NDC Directory, CMS NADAC of October 7, 2026 and the FDA Drug Shortage Database (FDA files October 8, 2026)
What next?
- Check more medicines together
- up to five at once