title: Self-reported symptoms in patients on antiepileptic drugs in monotherapy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To ascertain the frequency of self-reported symptoms in patients taking antiepileptic drugs (AED).
  
  
  METHODS
  We included patients on carbamazepine (CBZ) n = 36, valproate (VPA) n = 21, levetiracetam (LEV) n = 12, phenytoin (PHT) n = 11, lamotrigine (LTG) n = 20, patients not taking anticonvulsive drugs n = 19, and healthy control subjects (CTRL) n = 41 to complete the Liverpool Adverse Event Profile (LAEP).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean LAEP scores were CBZ/PHT/LEV/VPA/LTG/noAED/CTRL = 44.97/42.00/41.00/40.33/32.42/42.00/30.80. LEV scored overall in the same range as the older AED but had a different adverse effect profile with self-reported anger (33%) and shaky hands (42%) particularly frequent. Patients with depression or uncontrolled epilepsy had significantly higher LAEP scores than patients without depression or uncontrolled epilepsy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our unblinded observational study of self-reported symptoms suggested LTG was overall the drug with the least self-reported symptoms. Larger studies are needed to determine whether this was a truly significant difference. LEV had a different side effect profile to older AED. Confounding factors were depression and uncontrolled epilepsy. This observation should be further tested with randomized studies.
authors.affiliation: The Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, University of Liverpool, UK. udo.wieshmann@thewaltoncentre.nhs.uk
authors.forename: U C
authors.initials: UC
authors.lastname: Wieshmann
authors.forename: G M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Baker
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D000077213:Lamotrigine; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010889:Piracetam / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use; D057566:Self Report; D014227:Triazines / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D014227:Triazines; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D000077213:Lamotrigine; D010889:Piracetam