Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder and there is increasing evidence about the role of inflammation in epileptogenesis. These findings have spurred the search for new immunomodulatory approaches that can improve prognosis.
Donation match through Oct. 16, free webinars, Seizing Life's 100th episode, and more in this Update!
A new study will use long term seizure tracking technology to monitor and potentially predict patterns in epileptic seizures using continuous data collection of brain activity in people with drug-resistant epilepsy.
The current evidence supporting the use of vagus nerve stimulation in patients with therapy resistant epilepsy after new-onset refractory status epilepticus warrants further investigation.The current evidence supporting the use of vagus nerve stimulation in patients with therapy resistant epilepsy after new-onset refractory status epilepticus warrants further investigation.
CNB was the first drug in these patients that resulted in a long-lasting and significant seizure reduction. No severe adverse events occurred. We highlight cenobamate as an antiseizure medication that may lead to a clinically meaningful reduction of seizure frequency in adult patients with Dravet syndrome. It is, however, unclear if all patients with DS benefit, requiring further investigation and functional experiments.
People who had bariatric surgery had a 45% increased risk of developing epilepsy compared to people who did not have bariatric surgery. People who had a stroke after their bariatric surgery were 14 times more likely to develop epilepsy than those who did not have a stroke.
This study was carried out to determine the effect of intrauterine carbamazepine (Tegretol ®) exposure on fetal bone development during pregnancy.
Pediatric Epilepsy
Many seizing neonates fail to respond to first-line anticonvulsant medications. Phenobarbital, an allosteric modulator of GABAA receptors, has low efficacy in treating neonatal seizures and causes neuronal apoptosis [cell death]. Yet, it is one of the most used anticonvulsants in this age group.
“Our research has shown that despite the development of more than 15 new drugs in the past three decades, the overall treatment prognosis of epilepsy has not improved. This is likely because these drugs act in similar fashions to their older counterparts. Therefore, new classes of medications with radically different mechanisms of actions are needed,” Professor Kwan said.
