Anti-epilepsy medication plan

Epilepsy is a disorder that affects the nervous system. The primary symptom of epilepsy is seizures, a sudden surge of disruptive electrical activity in the brain that affects how a person feels or acts for a brief amount of time. Most of the time, epilepsy can be treated with anti-seizure medications. (In general, medications are able to control seizures in about 70 percent of people.)

There are now several anti-seizure medications available to choose from. The type of treatment your doctor prescribes will depend on several factors, including the frequency and severity of the seizures, your child's age, overall health and medical history. An accurate diagnosis of the type of epilepsy is also critical to choosing the best treatment. The choice of drugs used to treat epilepsy is most often based on factors like tolerance of the side effects, other illnesses, and the medication's delivery method. Our doctors may choose a medication from one of these major groups:

• First generation anti-seizure drugs: carbamazepine, phenytoin, phenobarbital, ethosuximide
• Second generation anti-seizure drugs: levetiracetam, oxcarbazepine, felbamate, lamotrigine, topiramate, zonisamide, gabapentin
• Third generation anti-seizure drugs: eslicarbazepine, perampanel, clobazam, vigabatrin, brivaracetam, pregabalin

Our epileptologists are also well-versed in using specialized anti-epileptics in certain seizure syndromes. This includes ACTH injection, oral steroids for infantile spasms and stiripentol for Dravet syndrome.