Anticonvulsant News and Research

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Trial comparing three drugs for status epilepticus

Status epilepticus is a condition that is characterized by repeated seizures and is a medical emergency. Treatment is usually with a Benzodiazepine such as Diazepam or Lorazepam etc. There have been not any studies that look at the comparative benefit of drugs that could be prescribed for those who do not respond to the benzodiazepines. The study titled, “Randomized Trial of Three Anticonvulsant Medications for Status Epilepticus,” was published in the latest issue of the journal New England Journal of Medicine.

1 Dec 2019

Comparative study finds three anti-seizure drugs to be equally safe and effective

A new study finds that the three most common treatment options administered in the emergency department for patients who experience refractory status epilepticus are equally safe and effective.

27 Nov 2019

Infants with genetic epilepsy show better response to treatment with ketogenic diet

Infants and young children with epilepsy due to a confirmed genetic abnormality had a better response to treatment with ketogenic diet compared to patients with other types of epilepsy, according to a review of 10-year experience at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. Results were published in Scientific Reports.

27 Aug 2019

Restek adds cannabidivarin to its selection of cannabis reference standards

Cannabis strains with high levels of cannabidiol (CBD) typically have higher levels of cannabidivarin as well, but accurate quantitation of both compounds for potency and strain ID is a must, especially as interest in using CBDV as an anticonvulsant and anti-nausea treatment continues to rise.

From Restek Corporation 29 Jul 2019

Why cilantro (coriander) is good for your health

Scientists have uncovered the molecular action through which the herb cilantro delays the onset of certain seizures in epilepsy and other diseases.

25 Jul 2019

Molecular action that enables cilantro to effectively delay certain seizures uncovered

Herbs, including cilantro, have a long history of use as folk medicine anticonvulsants. Until now, many of the underlying mechanisms of how the herbs worked remained unknown.

23 Jul 2019

Using popular anticonvulsant drug to thwart inflammation

Serious conditions, including sepsis, stem from inflammation in the body, and there is a lack of effective medication for sepsis.

2 Jul 2019

New drug could open up avenues for treatment of neonatal epilepsy

A new drug that inhibits neonatal seizures in rodent models could open up new avenues for the treatment of epilepsy in human newborns.

15 May 2019

Scientists solve 125-year-old mystery of the brain, uncover potential treatment for epilepsy

Scientists at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute have solved a 125-year-old mystery of the brain, and, in the process, uncovered a potential treatment for acquired epilepsy.

9 Nov 2018

Neuroene Therapeutics receives $1.5 million NIH grant to develop anti-seizure compound for epilepsy

Neuroene Therapeutics, a start-up company founded by mitochondrial biologist Sherine S. L. Chan, Ph.D. and medicinal chemist C. James Chou, Ph.D. of the Medical University of South Carolina, has received a $1.5 million NIH Phase II Small Business Innovation Research grant to optimize vitamin K analogues that could improve seizure control in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy.

29 Oct 2018

Molecular mechanisms behind therapeutic action of ancient herbal medicine discovered

Researchers in the Department of Physiology & Biophysics at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine have discovered the molecular basis for a therapeutic action of an ancient herbal medicine used across Africa to treat various illnesses, including epilepsy.

10 Oct 2018

New review examines potential of medicinal cannabis to help treat intractable epilepsy

A new British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology review examines the potential of medicinal cannabis--or medical marijuana--for helping patients with intractable epilepsy, in which seizures fail to come under control with standard anticonvulsant treatment.

8 Aug 2018

Research sheds light on composition of cannabis used to treat children with epilepsy

A pioneering study has found Australian parents who turned to medicinal cannabis to treat children with epilepsy overwhelmingly (75 percent) considered the extracts as "effective". Contrary to parental expectations, extracts generally contained low doses of cannabidiol - commonly considered to be a key therapeutic element and that has been successfully used in recent clinical trials to treat epilepsy.

5 Jul 2018

Anticonvulsants found to be ineffective for low back pain and can have adverse effects

Anticonvulsant drugs are increasingly being used to treat low back pain, but a new study in CMAJ finds they are ineffective and can have adverse effects.

3 Jul 2018

Early-life seizures prematurely switch on key brain synapses related to autism

Early-life seizures prematurely switch on key synapses in the brain that may contribute to further neurodevelopmental delay in children with autism and other intellectual disabilities, suggests a new study from researchers at Penn Medicine published online in Cell Reports.

29 May 2018

UCI research team uncovers new unexpected mode of neurotransmitter-based communication

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine have discovered the first example of a novel mode of neurotransmitter-based communication.

22 May 2018

Compound derived from cannabis may alter blood levels of antiepileptic drugs

New research published in Epilepsia, a journal of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), suggests that an investigational neurological treatment derived from cannabis may alter the blood levels of commonly used antiepileptic drugs.

7 Aug 2017

Research shows potential way to limit damage to the brain caused by seizure disorder

Tiny vesicles isolated from adult mesenchymal stem cells and administered intranasally can limit the damage to the brain of animal models caused by a seizure disorder called status epilepticus, according to research published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

21 Apr 2017

Genes implicated in rare pediatric epilepsy contribute to common forms of disorder, study finds

An international study led by Columbia University Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian researchers has found that several genes previously implicated only in rare, severe forms of pediatric epilepsy also contribute to common forms of the disorder.

12 Jan 2017

ADD Program receives $19.5 million NIH contract to test drugs for treating epilepsy

The University of Utah College of Pharmacy's Anticonvulsant Drug Development Program has been awarded a five-year $19.5 million contract renewal with the National Institutes of Health to test drugs to treat epilepsy, and the major focus of the project is to address needs that affect millions of people worldwide -identify novel investigational compounds to prevent the development of epilepsy or to treat refractory, or drug-resistant, epilepsy.

23 Nov 2016