Outcomes from a Spanish Expanded Access Program on cannabidiol treatment in pediatric and adult patients with epilepsy.

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness and tolerability of cannabidiol (CBD) in patients with developmental and epileptic encephalopathies, including Dravet syndrome (DS), and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), in a Spanish Expanded Access Program (EAP).

Methods: This was a multicenter, retrospective, observational study of patients treated with purified CBD in 14 hospitals across Spain. Patients with (1) written informed consent and (2) at least 6 months follow-up before the closure of the database were included.

Early-Onset Dementia Associated with a Heterozygous, Nonsense, and de novo Variant in the MBD5 Gene.

The haploinsufficiency of the methyl-binding domain protein 5 (MBD5) gene has been identified as the determinant cause of the neuropsychiatric disorders grouped under the name MBD5-neurodevelopment disorders (MAND). MAND includes patients with intellectual disability, behavioral problems, and seizures with a static clinical course. However, a few reports have suggested regression.

Effectiveness and safety of perampanel monotherapy for focal and generalized tonic-clonic seizures: Experience from a national multicenter registry.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness and tolerability of perampanel (PER) monotherapy in routine clinical practice for the treatment of focal onset and generalized tonic-clonic seizures (GTCS).

Methods: This multicenter, retrospective, observational study was conducted in patients aged ≥12 years treated with PER as primary monotherapy or converted to PER monotherapy by progressive reduction of background antiepileptic drugs. Outcomes included retention, responder, and seizure-free rate after 3, 6, and 12 months and tolerability throughout the follow-up.

Peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer thinning in genetic generalized epilepsy.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) between patients with genetic generalized epilepsy (GGE) and healthy controls.

Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted on adults aged 18-60 years. The study group comprised 26 consecutive patients who met the inclusion criteria and 26 healthy age- and sex-matched healthy adults.

Early add-on lacosamide in a real-life setting: results of the REALLY study.

Background And Objectives: Many patients with epilepsy are treated with antiepileptic drug (AED) polytherapy. Several factors influence the choice of early add-on therapy, and deciding on the most appropriate drug can be difficult. This study aimed to assess the efficacy and tolerability of lacosamide as early add-on therapy in patients with partial-onset seizures.

Control of seizures in different stages of partial epilepsy: LACO-EXP, a Spanish retrospective study of lacosamide.

Lacosamide is approved as adjunctive therapy for focal epilepsies. The number of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) tried is associated with prognosis. This multicenter, retrospective, observational study (LACO-EXP) in Spain in 500 adult patients with focal epilepsies examined the efficacy and tolerability of add-on lacosamide.

Relief of intractable posthypoxic myoclonus after administration of agomelatine.

Chronic posthypoxic myoclonus is characterized by myoclonic jerks that are specifically triggered by action. It is a rare but devastating sequela of hypoxic encephalopathy. We report a 42-year-old female patient with treatment-resistant chronic posthypoxic myoclonus, which improved with administration of the drug agomelatine.

Antiepileptic drug interactions.

Introduction: Antiepileptics are drugs used in the long-term treatment of epilepsy and other conditions such as pain or psychiatric diseases. They are often administered as polytherapy or in combination with other treatments. It is therefore important to know their potential interactions (with each other and with other substances) in order to avoid altering their efficacy or potentiating their side effects.

Diagnosis of epilepsy over the course of the disease.

Background: At the onset of the disease, differential diagnosis should be established between an epileptic seizure and a series of paroxysmal phenomena, such as syncope, pseudoseizure, or migraine aura, which may manifest with similar symptoms. But even when the initial differential diagnosis is established rigorously, we will see that it is often necessary to reconsider the diagnosis of epilepsy during the course of the disease.

Review Summary: Prospective studies analyzing initial recognition of epilepsy found that on half of occasions the diagnosis was reached late, when the patient had already suffered repeated seizures.