The LGS Foundation is pleased to announce that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved EPIDIOLEX® (cannabidiol / CBD) for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) in patients two years age or older. EPIDIOLEX® is the first prescription pharmaceutical formulation of highly purified CBD and the first in its class of anti-epileptic drugs.
“Today’s announcement gives individuals with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome and their families much-needed hope,” says LGS Foundation Executive Director Christina SanInocencio. “Lennox-Gastaut syndrome is a devastating form of epilepsy and despite currently available FDA-approved medications and a poly-therapy approach to treatment, the majority of individuals with LGS will continue to have life-long, debilitating seizures, along with cognitive impairment and abnormal waves on the EEG (electroencephalogram).”
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a compound derived from the cannabis plant that does not produce a “high” and has been an increasing focus of medical research in epilepsy. Recently, study results from the clinical trial of EPIDIOLEX® published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed to significantly reduce the number of seizures in patients with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome.
Along with the FDA’s approval for EPIDIOLEX® for seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, the approval is also indicated for another form of rare epilepsy that begins in childhood called Dravet syndrome.