title: Clinical characteristics and use of antiepileptic drugs among adolescents with uncomplicated epilepsy at a referral center in Novi Sad, Serbia.
abstract: The study aimed to investigate the type and etiology of epileptic seizures and the use of antiepileptic drugs for the treatment of various forms of epileptic seizures among adolescents with active but uncomplicated epilepsy at a tertiary referral center in Novi Sad, Serbia. The study design was cross sectional. Data were obtained from patients and medical records. A total of 103 adolescents (39 males and 64 females) with active but uncomplicated epilepsy were included. Patients with primary generalized seizures had significantly better control of epilepsy than those with partial seizures with or without secondary generalization. A total of 80 (77.7%) adolescents had no known underlying etiology based on initial diagnosis and evaluation. All adolescents were classified into known idiopathic syndromes (54.4%), non-classifiable cryptogenic etiology (23.3%), and secondary epilepsy attributed to MRI-identified lesions (22.3%). Eighty-eight percent of adolescents were taking monotherapy and 64.8% of these were taking valproate. New antiepileptic drugs (AEDs), topiramate and lamotrigine, the only drugs available free of charge at the Serbian market, were used in 19.4% of patients. A total of 57.3% adolescents were seizure-free, 24.2% had occasional seizures, and 18.5% had seizures despite AED treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Neurology and Epilepsy, Clinic for Neurology, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljka 1, 21 000 Novi Sad, Serbia. gebauerbukurov.ksenija@gmail.com
authors.forename: Ksenija
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gebauer-Bukurov
authors.forename: Ksenija
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bozic
authors.forename: Slobodan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sekulic
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055771:Serbia / Q000453:epidemiology; D062606:Tertiary Care Centers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants