In 1954 Badenoch described two cases of megaloblastic anaemia which developed in epileptics while under treatment with phenytoin sodium and phenobarbitone, and subsequently I2 further cases have been recorded (Hawkins and Meynell, 1954; Chalmers and Boheimer, I954; Rhind and Varadi, I954; Webster, 1954; Berlyne, Levene and McGlashan, 1955; Ryan and Forshaw, I955; Vaishnava, I955). Six of these ...

Essential tremor (ET) is the most common movement disorder that is frequently treated by propranolol or primidone. However, 30% of patients with ET do not respond to either propranolol or primidone. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of topiramate for ET.We searched the MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials for relevant randomized...

The value of adding a second antiepileptic drug in intractable epilepsy with complex-partial seizures was studied in a long-term prospective trial in 30 adult patients who failed to respond to the maximum use of carbamazepine, phenytoin, phenobarbital or primidone as the first drug. Based on the individual previous history of one-drug treatment, the most promising antiepileptic drug (carbamazep...

By R. J. CALVERT, E. HUnwoilTil AND A. L. MACBEAN I HE OCCASIONAL DEVELOPMENT of megaloblastic anemia during the administration for months or years of certain anticonvubsant drumgs ( phenytom sodium and/or primidone, with or withoumt phenobarbital ) has been reviewed by Gydell#{176} and Newman and Sumner.11 Ouir report concerns an epileptic patient who presented as a gynecologic emergency with ...

We describe an assay system for measuring phenobarbital, diphenylhydantoin, primidone, ethosuximide, and carbamazepine in 25 mul of serum. The procedure involves precipitation of proteins with an acetonitrile solution containing cyheptamide as an internal standard, and reverse-phase chromatography on a 4 mm X 30 cm column containing "muBondapak C18." The anticonvulsants are eluted with an equiv...

We describe a procedure for determining phenobarbital, primidone, and diphenylhydantoin simultaneously in 50-mul volumes of serum by use of gas chromatography and a detector with heightened sensitivity and selectivity for nitrogenous compounds. The drugs, together with an internal standard, 5-allyl-5-phenyl barbituric acid, are extracted from serum by the procedure of MacGee [Anal. Chem. 42, 42...

We describe a simple, sensitive determination of phenobarbital, diphenylhydantoin, carbamazepine, and primidone in serum, by use of gas-liquid chromatography with temperature programming. The methylated derivatives of these anticonvulsants are well resolved, as was 5-(p-methyl-phenyl)-5-phenylhydantoin, the internal standard. The proposed procedure requires only 0.20 ml of serum and can be done...

PURPOSE Evaluation of the efficacy of add-on valproate (VPA) or primidone (PRM) in patients with partial epilepsy unresponsive to carbamazepine (CBZ). METHODS The trial was prospective and open. Patients, aged 8-58 years, with partial epilepsy who did not become seizure free on CBZ were randomized to either VPA add-on or PRM add-on. The baseline period and the evaluation period were both 3 mo...

A randomised double-blind placebo-controlled trial of phenylethylmalonamide, the major metabolite of primidone was performed in eight patients with essential tremor. Phenylethylmalonamide was given in a daily dose of 400 mg for one week and 800 mg for a second week. The compound had no statistically significant effect on the amplitude of tremor assessed by an accelerometric method, tests of per...

Medical Memoranda BRmrns 215 the same day her haemoglobin dropped to 5.4 g. with 5% reticulo-cytes. A second blood transfusion was given, steroids were continued, and chloramphenicol was started. Her temperature dropped within three days and she remained afebrile. The haemoglobin was 8.5 g. on the twenty-seventh day of the illness and 10.5 g. a month later. COMMENT All five cases were anaemic o...