Piracetam? a noo tropic - good or bad?

Question

All knowlegeable opinions/experiences welcome. Thanks

Answer 1

My main concern with piracetam is it's similarity to the anti-epileptic medicine Keppra (levo-etiracetam). Keppra is a very good, very potent medication for epilepsy with a very favorable side effect profile. The side effects can be rather strange however: hallucinations, pins and needles a syndrome known as 'keppra rage' which involves irrational over the top anger, and the occasional reports of people on Keppra having spontaneous, sudden bouts of such severe depression that they immediately attempt suicide. However, these are very VERY rare.

I can't comment on it's nootropic properties, but I know two or three people personally who use piracetam and report it favorably - we all know that anecdotal evidence is sketchy at best though. None of them have reported the above side effects.