title: Efficacy and safety of levetiracetam as adjunctive therapy in adult patients with uncontrolled partial epilepsy: the Asia SKATE II Study.
abstract: This study evaluated the safety and efficacy of levetiracetam as adjunctive therapy for partial seizures in everyday clinical practice in Asian populations. Patients aged > or =16 years (N=251) with inadequately controlled partial epilepsy were recruited from 29 centers across Asia. Levetiracetam was added to existing antiepileptic medication for 16 weeks at a starting dose of 500 or 1000 mg/day and titrated to a maximum of 3000 mg/day according to clinical response. The study completion rate was 86.9%. Adverse events were reported by 73.3% of patients and were generally mild, leading to treatment withdrawal in only 7.2%. The most common adverse events were somnolence (30.3%) and dizziness (14.7%). Compared with pretreatment baseline, 44.0% of patients had a > or =50% reduction in seizure frequency, with a median reduction of 46.4%, and 17.7% became seizure free during the treatment period. Levetiracetam was well tolerated and efficacious as adjunctive therapy for partial epilepsy in clinical practice among Asian populations.
authors.affiliation: The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China. patrickkwan@cuhk.edu.hk
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kwan
authors.forename: Shih-Hui
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Yotin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chinvarun
authors.forename: Leonor
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cabral-Lim
authors.forename: Zariah Abdul
authors.initials: ZA
authors.lastname: Aziz
authors.forename: Yuk-Keung
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Lo
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tonner
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Beh
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Edrich
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D044466:Asian People; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D004828:Epilepsies, Partial / Q000188:drug therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D057194:Intention to Treat Analysis; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D008297:Male; D018579:Patient Selection; D010889:Piracetam / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D010889:Piracetam