In epileptic patients carbamazepine and diphenylhydantoin have opposite effects on whole and free plasma tryptophan concentrations, the former elevating and the latter depressing them. It is unlikely that these observations relate to the similar anti-epileptic properties of these two drugs but they may relate to their different effects on mental function and mood.

Around half of the pregnancies in women with epilepsy are unplanned and choice contraceptive method epileptic is important, since it requires considering their possible pharmacological interactions certain types anti-epileptic drugs. Drugs from this class which induce hepatic enzyme activity may alter metabolism most hormonal methods contraception, affect efficacy. Hormonal contraception regard...

'Severe myoclonic epilepsy in infancy' or Dravet syndrome is a clear example of the impact of severe epilepsy on the developing child. Presenting with febrile seizures in infancy, children later on develop a severe epileptic syndrome with mental retardation. Nearly all children have life-threatening status epilepticus during the first two years of life. The clinical diagnosis can now be confirm...

Purpose of review. To present an overview of the recent findings in pathophysiology and management of epileptic seizures in patients with gliomas. Recent findings. Low-grade gliomas are the most epileptogenic brain tumors. Regarding pathophysiology, the role of peritumoral changes (hypoxia and acidosis, blood–brain barrier disruption, increase or decrease of neurotransmitters and receptors) are...

This work reviews the current knowledge on epileptogenesis and pathophysiology of epilepsy. Recently, gene defects underlying four monogenic epilepsies (generalized epilepsy with febrile seizures, autosomal dominant nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy, benign familial neonatal convulsions and episodic ataxia type 1 with partial seizures) have been identified, shedding new light on the pathophysiolo...

conditions and is characterized by spontaneous recurrent seizures.1 Understanding the pathophysiology of seizure initiation and termination has important implications for our ability to manage seizure disorders, and for the potential development of novel anti-epileptic agents. Previous research in our laboratory2 and others3-5 have shown that cannabinoid compounds such as WIN55,212-2 are anti-e...

The ketogenic diet (KD) is an established treatment for refractory epilepsy, including some inflammation-induced epileptic encephalopathies. In a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced fever model in rats, we found that animals given the KD for 14 days showed less fever and lower proinflammatory cytokine levels than control animals. However, KD rats exhibited a decrease in circulating levels of arach...

OBJECTIVE To study the clinical value of anti-epileptic drugs combined with B vitamins in the treatment of epilepsy after stroke. PATIENTS AND METHODS The study included 90 consecutive patients with epilepsy after stroke. Patients were randomly divided into groups of 30 each according to treatment: single-agent or combination anti-epileptic therapy with oxcarbazepine and sodium valproate (con...