ObjectiveTo investigate the clinical characteristics of epileptics with pregnancy and then provide reference for standardized management of epileptics with pregnancy. MethodsFrom June 2012 to June 2021, epileptics with pregnancy who delivered in Jinan Central Hospital were selected as the research subjects. The clinical data such as the application of Antiseizure medications (ASMs) during pregnancy, seizure frequency, pregnancy outcomes, delivery ways, offspring feeding ways and the incidence of complications were investigated and analyzed. ResultsAmong 36 epileptics with pregnancy, 20 cases (55.56%) were treated with ASMs alone, 5 cases (13.88%) were treated with combined medication, and 11 cases (30.56%) were treated without ASMs during pregnancy. 15 cases (41.67%) adhered to systematic application of ASMs, 17 cases (47.22%) did not adhere to systematic application of ASMs, and 4 cases (11.11%) had unknown medication history. The frequency of seizures increased in 5 cases, decreased in 7 cases and unchanged in 24 cases during pregnancy. Pregnancy outcomes: full-term delivery in 33 cases (91.67%), preterm delivery in 1 case (2.78%) and abortion in 2 cases (5.56%). Delivery mode: cesarean section in 31 cases (91.18%), vaginal delivery in 3 cases (8.82%). After delivery, 4 cases (11.76%) were fed with milk powder and 30 cases (88.24%) were breast-fed. Complications: There were 6 cases complicated with anemia (16.67%), 5 cases complicated with gestational hypertension (13.89%), 3 cases complicated with gestational diabetes (8.33%), 4 cases complicated with premature rupture of membranes (11.11%), 2 cases complicated with fetal growth restriction (5.56%), 2 cases complicated with oligohydramnios (5.56%), 3 cases complicated with fetal distress (8.33%) and 3 cases complicated with neonatal asphyxia (8.33%). ConclusionsThe proportion of epileptics with pregnancy who were systematically treated with ASMs was low and the seizures were poorly controlled. There is a lack of standardized management for such patients in clinical practice.
Perampanel (PER) is a third-generation novel anti-seizure drug, a postsynaptic neuronal (α-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4- isoxazolepropionic acid, AMPA) receptor antagonist, which effectively controls seizures by inhibiting glutamate-induced neurological hypertransmission. PER can not only be used for the addition of focal epilepsy 4 years old and above, but also monotherapy for children (≥ 4 years old) for the treatment of focal epilepsy patients, its efficacy and safety is relatively good, has been used clinically in many countries, the article overviewed the pharmacokinetics, mechanism, and the addition and monotherapy in different epilepsy types of childhood epilepsy and other aspects, in order to provide a reference for clinical medication, and provide individualized treatment for children with epilepsy.
Epilepsy is a common chronic disease of the nervous system, which has certain adverse effects on the cognitive, psychological and social functions of the patients. To date, anti-seizure medications (ASMs) remain the first-line treatment option for epilepsy, but many patients with epilepsy still do not have effective seizure control when multiple ASMs are used in combination. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a new target and mechanism ASMs to bring about new treatment options and hope for patients with intractable epilepsy. Perampanel, a new third-generation ASMs, whereas second-generation ASMs tend to exert anti-seizure effects mainly by regulating ion channels or enhancing related mechanisms such as gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) effects, perampanel exerts its effects mainly by targeting the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate. Perampanel is the first selective α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole-propionate (AMPA) receptor antagonist and the first selective inhibitory ASMs for excitatory postsynaptic function. Because of its unique target and mechanism, it has been approved by many countries in the world for adjuvant additive therapy and monotherapy for patients with focal and general epilepsy. In addition, with the discovery of the neuroprotective, antioxidant, neurotransmitter regulation effects of perampanel, it also provides a new potential choice for the treatment of other diseases. This article mainly reviews the mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, clinical trials and treatment of other diseases other than epilepsy of perampanel.
The postictal state which describes changes in behavior, motor function, and neuropsychological performance that occur after a seizure and persist until these variables return to their normal baseline, which can take anywhere from a few seconds to a few hours to a few days. The degree and intensity of the postictal state significantly affects the patient's quality of life and is strongly associated with the patient's rating of the severity of the seizure, but receives little attention in the treatment of epilepsy, and anti-seizure medications prevent postictal events by making the patient seizures-free, or will attenuate or shorten the time after the seizure. Therefore, it is of great clinical significance to evaluate the efficacy of anti-seizure medications in the post-seizure state. This article reviews the effects of the main anti-seizure medications on the postictal state
Homocysteine is an intermediate product of methionine and cysteine metabolism, and plays a key role in methylation. Epilepsy is one of the common diseases of the nervous system, long-term repeated seizures will not only cause damage to the brain tissue, but also cause cognitive impairment. At present, the clinical treatment for epilepsy is still mainly to control symptoms, the fundamental etiology of epilepsy still needs to be improved, to explore the etiology of seizures, fundamentally control seizures, is still our long-term struggle direction. High homocysteine is associated with many diseases. Epidemiological studies have shown that the serum homocysteine level of 10% ~ 40% of epilepsy patients is higher than that of the normal population. By exploring the relationship between serum Hcy and epilepsy,We expect to provide help for the diagnosis and treatment of clinical epilepsy.
Objective To explore the clinical characteristics of patients with combined use of ≥2 kinds of anti-seizure medications in Tibetan plateau. Methods Epilepsy patients who were hospitalized in the People’s Hospital of Tibet Autonomous Region from September 2018 to September 2023 and used ≥2 kinds of anti-seizure medications in combination were selected. Their demographic data such as gender, age, and ethnicity, as well as diagnostic information, medication and other clinical data were collected, and relevant demographic and clinical characteristics were analyzed. In the later stage, telephone follow-up was used to record medication and epileptic seizure control. Results A total of 2295 patients with epilepsy were included, of which 142 (6.2%) met the inclusion criteria, of which 133 (93.7%) were Tibetans. There were more males than females (86 vs. 56, P<0.05), and more minors and young patients than middle-aged and elderly patients (106 vs. 36, P<0.05). 87.3% of the patients underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computed tomography (CT), and 71.1% of the patients were abnormal. The main cause of epilepsy was structural etiology (84/142, 59.2%). The most common combination was two drugs (127/142, 89.4%). The largest proportion of combination was sodium valproate and levetiracetam (46/142, 32.4%). After standardized multi-drug combination therapy, the average frequency of epilepsy seizures was significantly reduced compared with the baseline, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Among the 98 patients aged ≥14 years, 15 cases (15.3%) had drug-refractory epilepsy, 18 cases (18.4%) had seizures controlled by standardized combination medication, 16 cases (16.3%) had seizures controlled by reducing combination medication to a single drug, 5 cases (5.1%) had good control and had stopped medication, 3 cases (3.1%) had frequent epileptic seizures due to poor medication compliance, 15 cases (15.3%) had irregular medication, 17 cases (17.3%) died, and 9 cases (9.2%) were lost. Conclusion The proportion of epilepsy treated with multiple drugs and refractory to drugs was lower than the conclusion of previous studies, and the anti-epileptic effect of multiple drugs was positive. Structural causes (stroke, etc.) are the main causes of epilepsy, and brain parasitic infection is a unique factor of high-altitude epilepsy. Strengthening the standardized use of drugs will help improve the treatment status and prognosis of patients.