title: Intravenous levetiracetam treatment in status epilepticus: A prospective study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the efficacy of intravenous (IV) levetiracetam (LEV) in the treatment of status epilepticus (SE) and treatment outcomes.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted on patients, who were classified according to the clinical characteristics of their seizures, in the emergency department, neurology, and other services of our hospital. Patients were administrated IV LEV for the treatment of their SE after failing to respond to IV diazepam.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We prospectively investigated 30 patients, 16 females and 14 males whose ages ranged between 17 and 90 years (55.6 ± 19.6). Fourteen patients had convulsive SE (CSE), 11 had nonconvulsive SE (NCSE), and 5 had epilepsia partialis continua (EPC). The patients were given IV LEV with dosages ranging between 1000 and 4000 mg/day. Twenty-nine of the patients continued to receive LEV orally as maintenance treatment. The most common etiologies were cerebrovascular diseases (n = 7) and brain tumors (n = 6). SE was terminated in 23 (76.6%) patients. In the 12 months that followed SE, 9 of our patients (30%) died and 4 patients could not be contacted. Fifteen patients reported having no adverse effects, whereas three had mild adverse effects. No major adverse effects or complications causing disability were observed in twelve patients who were unconscious.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Treatment with IV LEV is well-tolerated and effective both in focal and generalized SE. IV LEV has the combined advantage of efficacy, safety, and ease of use, which qualifies it to be the first choice after benzodiazepines (BZD) in the treatment of SE. This is the first prospective study of IV LEV treatment in status epilepticus and has the longest follow-up period, one year.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey. Electronic address: drmuratmertatmaca@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Murat Mert
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Atmaca
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Elif Kocasoy
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Orhan
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Nerses
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bebek
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Candan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gurses
mesh_terms: D061605:Administration, Intravenous; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003975:Diazepam / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000069279:Drug Resistant Epilepsy / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010889:Piracetam / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013226:Status Epilepticus / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D017211:Treatment Failure; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D000077287:Levetiracetam; D003975:Diazepam; D010889:Piracetam
keywords: Efficacy; Intravenous levetiracetam; Prospective; Status epilepticus; Systemic disease