title: Levetiracetam for the treatment of neonatal seizures.
abstract: Seizures are a common occurrence in the neonatal intensive care unit, especially among low-birth-weight infants. The efficacy and safety of standard anticonvulsants have not been evaluated extensively in the neonate. In addition, there is concern for the adverse effects of phenobarbital on long-term development. Levetiracetam has been a commonly prescribed oral anticonvulsant for the use of adjunctive therapy for partial seizures in adults with favorable tolerability, and it has been recently approved for children older than age 4 years. There are no published studies regarding the safety and efficacy of this medication in the infant population. This report describes the initiation of levetiracetam in 3 infants, aged 2 days to 3 months, for refractory seizures or intolerance to other anticonvulsants. Each patient was without seizure on levetiracetam monotherapy, and there were no adverse effects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neonatology, Wilford Hall Medical Center, Lackland AFB, Texas 78236, USA.
authors.forename: Michael T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Shoemaker
authors.forename: Joshua S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Rotenberg
mesh_terms: D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000187:drug effects / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D008297:Male; D010889:Piracetam / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012640:Seizures / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D010889:Piracetam