Post-stroke epilepsy.

Epilepsy as a result of stroke is currently the most rapidly increasing form of epilepsy. The risk of post-stroke epileptogenesis is higher after haemorrhagic stroke than after ischemic stroke. We provide here a brief clinical review of the topic to highlight the misinterpretation and undertreatment of focal epileptic seizures in stroke patients.

[A man in his fifties with variable weakness and difficulty in walking].

Background: An active man in his fifties was treated for atrial fibrillation with ablation. One week later he noticed variable weakness in his lower extremities. In the days that followed, his symptoms improved but could vary from day to day.

Sexual function in people with epilepsy: Similarities and differences with the general population.

Objective: The potential impact of epilepsy on sexual function is important for patient welfare, but often neglected. This study explored the occurrences of different sexual problems in patients with both well-controlled and mostly refractory epilepsy, and compared these with equivalent information from the general population.

Methods: Between 2015 and 2017, a total of 221 adult inpatients and outpatients, mostly with intractable epilepsy, at the National Centre for Epilepsy in Norway, and 78 outpatients with well-controlled epilepsy at Lillehammer hospital participated in a questionnaire survey on sexual function.

Increased rate of acute caesarean sections in women with epilepsy: results from the Oppland Perinatal Database in Norway.

Background And Purpose: Studies in women with epilepsy (WWE) regarding pregnancy and labour complications have disclosed contradictory results. Our purpose was to investigate whether WWE have a higher risk of acute caesarean section (CS) or pregnancy complications than women without epilepsy or women with other chronic diseases and, if we found a higher risk, to explore potential explanations.

Methods: The study used prospectively registered obstetric data from the Oppland Perinatal Database in the period 2001-2011, containing information on 18 244 births, including 110 singleton pregnancies in mothers with validated epilepsy.

Pharmacokinetic variability of valproate during pregnancy - Implications for the use of therapeutic drug monitoring.

Background And Purpose: Use of valproate (VPA) in women of childbearing age is restricted due to dose-dependent risk of teratogenicity. The purpose of this study was to characterise pharmacokinetic variability of VPA in pregnancy, and discuss use of therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) as guidance to exposure in women.

Method: Measurements of trough total and unbound VPA concentrations before, during and after pregnancy, at assumed steady-state were collected from the TDM-database (2006-2016) at the National Center for Epilepsy in Norway.