Abstract found on Jama Network
Importance: Despite advances in the understanding of dietary therapies in children with drug-resistant epilepsy, no quantitative comparison exists between different dietary interventions.
Objective: To evaluate the comparative efficacy and safety of various dietary therapies in childhood drug-resistant epilepsy.
Data Sources: Systematic review and network meta-analysis (frequentist) of studies in PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Ovid published from inception to April 2022 using the search terms ketogenic diet, medium chain triglyceride diet, modified Atkins diet, low glycemic index therapy, and refractory epilepsy.
Study Selection: Randomized clinical trials comparing different dietary therapies (ketogenic diet, modified Atkins diet, and low glycemic index therapy) with each other or care as usual in childhood drug-resistant epilepsy were included. Abstract, title, and full text were screened independently by 2 reviewers.
Conclusions and Relevance: This study found that all dietary therapies are effective in the short term. However, the modified Atkins diet had better tolerability, a higher probability for 50% or higher seizure reduction, and comparable probability for 90% or higher seizure reduction and may be a sounder option than the ketogenic diet. Direct head-to-head comparison studies are needed to confirm these findings.