Has the Outlook for Drug-Resistant Childhood Epilepsy Changed?

A 40-year study shows that childhood-onset epilepsy that is apparently drug-resistant may not remain so, but treatment strategies remain essentially the same.

In this study, the authors aimed to answer the questions of how many patients with incident drug-resistant epilepsy ultimately have seizure-free periods, and whether clinical features predict eventual seizure freedom. This study took advantage of the authors' previously reported cohort of 245 children with either incident (n=150) or prevalent (n=95) epilepsy who presented between 1961 and 1964 (Acta Paediatr Scand 1973; 68 [Suppl 237]:1). Patients were included in the current analysis if their epilepsy was drug-resistant, according to the definition proposed by Kwan and colleagues (Epilepsia 2010; 51:1069) and had follow-up of 10 years or more. Median follow-up was 40.5 years.

Of the original 245 patients, 102 met the inclusion criteria. Of …

Reviewing Author

Joseph Sullivan, MD