ABSTRACT
We reviewed the charts of 106 patients treated with carbamazepine. Age, sex, race, seizure type, seizure focus, age at onset, duration of epileptic illness, reasons for discontinuing treatment, other medications, and response to treatment of seizures, psychiatric symptoms, and behavioral symptoms were recorded. Statistical analysis was done to determine clinical factors influencing response to carbamazepine. Increasing duration of epileptic illness leads to a decreased response to carbamazepine, which controls both seizure and behavioral symptoms effectively; concurrent medication decreases behavioral symptom control without affecting the control of the seizures. We found a strongly negative correlation between duration of seizures and improvement of psychiatric symptoms with carbamazepine therapy. We provide a clinical profile of the carbamazepine responder to guide clinicians in their use of this drug.
Subject(s)
Carbamazepine/therapeutic use , Mental Disorders/drug therapy , Seizures/drug therapy , Adult , Age Factors , Carbamazepine/adverse effects , Drug Therapy, Combination , Humans , Mental Disorders/complications , Seizures/complications , Time FactorsABSTRACT
We have presented a case of herpes simplex encephalitis that is interesting in that seizure activity was detected in mesial temporal structures, without manifestations of seizure activity except for severe emotional lability with explosive emotional outbursts. Response to carbamazepine (Tegretol) included marked reduction in EEG-detected seizure activity and in the frequency of emotional outbursts, extending to one year after treatment.
