PHARMACOTHERAPY OF EPILEPSY.

Epilepsy is a worldwide neurological disease with a characteristic feature of the seizure development activity in one or both brain hemispheres, which can be suppressed by antiepileptic drugs. The main intention of pharmacotherapy is to improve the life quality of patients by partially or completely reducing the number of seizures and minimizing side effects, drug interactions and contraindications. These demands are met by a newer generation of antiepileptic drugs including perampanel (PER). The aim of the study was to analyse a group of 43 outpatients treated with PER. PER has been used as the first adjuvant antiepileptic drug during 12 months and the gathered data were evaluated focusing on the efficacy and drug safety. Our results indicated that the highest effect of PER was achieved after a maximum of one previous monotherapy (88.4 % of patients). The results have also shown a high PER potential as the 1st add-on antiepileptic drug in complete or partial seizure reduction during polytherapy with the correctly indicated antiepileptic drug in optimal dose, especially for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy already after 6 month therapy. Twenty patients (47.3 %) showed seizure-free status after 12 months of PER therapy and a seizure reduction by more than 50 % was indicated in fifteen patients (34.1 %). The most commonly concomitant antiepileptic drug with PER was levetiracetam (51.2 %). PER has showed a broadspectrum effect on both focal and generalized seizures with one tablet per day being sufficient. The concomitant use of dietary supplements with magnesium during PER therapy is recommended as an additional treatment of epilepsy (68.8 % of patients in our study). PER could be indicated as the drug with a safe profile and minimal side effects reported in 14 % of our patients. PER is considered a quality antiepileptic drug helping patients to live actively despite the diagnosis of epilepsy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]