The Pharmacotherapy of Childhood Epilepsy.
- Author:
Sang Ook NAM
1
Author Information
1. Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Pusan National University, Busan, Korea. weareone@mdhouse.com
- Publication Type:Review
- Keywords:
Childhood epilepsy;
Antiepileptic drug;
Epilepsy treatment
- MeSH:
Anticonvulsants;
Child;
Drug Therapy*;
Epilepsy*;
Humans;
Ketogenic Diet;
Nervous System Diseases;
Quality of Life;
Recurrence;
Seizures;
Vagus Nerve Stimulation
- From:Korean Journal of Pediatrics
2004;47(8):821-826
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
Epilepsy is one of the most common and disabling neurologic disorders in childhood. The primary goal of epilepsy treatment is to choose the treatment modality that provides the best chance of improving the patient's quality of life. In addition to classic antiepileptic drugs, newly developed antiepileptic drugs ketogenic diet, epilepsy surgery, and vagal nerve stimulation have improved the ability to treat seizure disorders during the past decades. The mainstay of treatment remains pharmacotherapy. The factors that affect decision of whether to treat seizures with medications and which antiepileptic drugs to use include the likelihood of seizure recurrence, type and severity of seizures, available antiepileptic drug efficacies and toxicities, need for hematologic monitoring, ease to dosing, underlying illness, pharmacologic interaction, and school and other social issues. In this article, we will describe the principle of drug selection for seizure disorder in pediatric patients and the efficacies and adverse effects of the typical and new antiepileptics. Information about the available antiepileptic drugs will help the pediatrician to select the best drug for children with epilepsy.
