title: Levetiracetam in the treatment of Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.
abstract: Lennox-Gastaut syndrome is an epileptic encephalopathy characterized by multiple seizure types, mental retardation, and a slow spike-and-wave pattern on electroencephalography. Medical intractability is common. We identified a case series of six patients diagnosed with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome in which levetiracetam was initiated as add-on therapy for the management of seizures. At follow-up, four patients experienced 100% reduction of their myoclonic seizures; two patients had greater than 50% reduction of their atonic seizures, and four patients experienced 100% reduction in their generalized tonic-clonic seizures. Tonic seizures were not responsive to treatment. The most common side effect was irritability; the most positive change involved alertness. In this small sample, levetiracetam appeared effective in reducing seizures in Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. This preliminary study is limited by its retrospective design and small number of patients, but positive findings warrant a larger scale, multicenter study.
authors.affiliation: University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Arkansas Children's Hospital, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA.
authors.forename: Emily C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: De Los Reyes
authors.forename: Gregory B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Sharp
authors.forename: Jane P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Sue E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Hale
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D004829:Epilepsy, Generalized / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004830:Epilepsy, Tonic-Clonic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D008297:Male; D020190:Myoclonic Epilepsy, Juvenile / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D010889:Piracetam / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013577:Syndrome
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D010889:Piracetam