Pregabalin is one of the latest antiepileptic drugs introduced for the treatment of partial epilepsy. Its efficacy and safety as adjunctive therapy in refractory partial epilepsy have been established in four double-blind placebo-controlled trials (n = 1396) and 4 long-term open-label studies (n = 1480). In 3 fixed-dose trials, the proportion of patients with a >/=50% reduction in seizure frequ...

AIM This study evaluated the efficacy and tolerability of the ketogenic diet (KD) in young Indian children with refractory epilepsy. The changes in biochemical and lipid profile with KD were also assessed. METHODS Children aged 6 months to 5 years who had daily seizures (or at least 7 seizures/week) despite the appropriate use of at least three antiepileptic drugs were enrolled. KD was introd...

INTRODUCTION Lacosamide (LCS) is a new antiepileptic drug (AED) licensed in the European Union (EU) and United States (US) in 2008. AIMS To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of add-on LCS in an out-patient epilepsy clinic setting to obtain useful information for everyday practice. METHODS We pooled data retrospectively from the case note of patients with refractory epilepsy in whom LCS...

PURPOSE To study the clinical outcome in hippocampal deep brain stimulation (DBS) for the treatment of patients with refractory mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) according to the electrode location. METHODS Eight MTLE patients implanted in the hippocampus and stimulated with high-frequency DBS were included in this study. Five underwent invasive recordings with depth electrodes to localize...

BACKGROUND Angelman syndrome (AS) is a neurogenetic disorder characterized by severe mental retardation, speech disorder, stereotyped jerky movements, and a peculiar behavioral profile, with a happy disposition and outbursts of laughter. Most patients with AS present with epilepsy and suggestive electroencephalographic patterns, which may be used as diagnostic criteria. OBJECTIVE To study epi...

Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of topiramate as adjunctive therapy in children with inadequately controlled epilepsy. Methods: Children, aged 1-15 years, with inadequately controlled epilepsy were entered into the trial. Topiramate was prescribed at doses of 19 mg/kg/day for 6 months. Primary efficacy variable was the percent reduction in the seizure rate during the maintenance...

Four patients, diagnosed with refractory epilepsy, were treated with both continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and antiepileptic medication (AEM) and showed > 50% reduction in seizures after 6 months-2 years follow-up. Two patients subsequently had AEM withdrawn and are seizure free and in one such patient, obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) has remained the only operative diagnosis. This dua...

Status epilepticus (SE) describes persistent or recurring seizures without a return to baseline mental status and is a common neurologic emergency. SE can occur in the context of epilepsy or may be symptomatic of a wide range of underlying etiologies. The clinician's aim is to rapidly institute care that simultaneously stabilizes the patient medically, identifies and manages any precipitant con...

Topiramate is a recently licensed and marketed antiepileptic drug in the UK for use as add-on therapy for refractory partial epilepsy. It has multiple modes of action involving voltage-dependent sodium channels, GABA receptors and glutamate receptors. Topiramate has very favourable pharmacokinetics as it is primarily excreted unchanged. Its metabolism is, however, increased by enzyme inducers, ...

PURPOSE As the initial symptoms of epileptic seizures, many types of auras have significant localizing or lateralizing value. In this study, we hypothesized that the type of aura may predict postsurgical outcome in patients with medically refractory temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and mesial temporal sclerosis (MTS). METHODS In this retrospective study, all patients with a clinical diagnosis of ...