[Gabitril as an additive drug in therapy of intractable epileptic seizures in children]. / Gabitril w terapii dodanej w opornych napadach czesciowych zlozonych i wtórnie uogólnionych u dzieci. Doniesienie wstepne.

Tiagabine (Gabitril, Sanofi Synlhelabo) new antiepileptic drug was used in add-on therapy in 25 children with resistant partial complex and secondary generalized seizures. Treatment was carried out in children aged 4-17 years with low dose escalation from 5 to 45 mg/day, in three doses until good clinical effects were obtained. In 3 patients aged 4 years, in 11 children aged 5-12 years and in 11 children aged above 17 years Gabitril was used. Follow up period was 8-10 months. Frequency of epileptic seizures before implementation of Gabitril treatment, even during polytherapy with 2 or more antiepileptic drugs was several to hundred per day (status epilepticus was observed in 2 children with Rasmussen syndrome). During the observation 5 children became seizure free, in 11 patients reduction in seizures frequency above 50% was observed and in 9 children effects of treatment were not good enough. Gabitril was well tolerated, and any adverse events were observed in add-on therapy. Preliminary observation and good results of add-on therapy with Gabitril are positive. Drug is safe and generally well-tolerated with good effects at add-on therapy in 64% children with resistant partial complex and secondary generalized seizures.

[Epilepsy as a complication of bronchial asthma]. / Padaczka jako powiklanie astmy oskrzelowej u dzieci.

UNLABELLED: Epilepsy was recognized in 9 of 120 patients with bronchial asthma, aged 7-15 years, hospitalized in the Department of Allergology and Infectious Diseases in the Years 1989-1992. All the children had severe asthma attacks previously, six of them required hospitalisation at Intensive Care Unit. In 8 of the patients grand mal (generalised, tonic-clonic) seizures was observed, one child had absence state. Seizures were present both in the acute state of the asthma and during improvement. Anticonvulsant therapy was started immediately after diagnosis of epilepsy has been established. Clinical improvement with cease of seizures was noted there after. All the 9 patients had EEG examinations: 22 out of 29 performed, were abnormal. CONCLUSIONS: 1. Severe asthma attacks lasting for a considerable period of time, mainly 5 years, evoke epilepsy. 2. Undesirable signs of the antiasthmatic therapy on CNS was not found. 3. Accurate treatment of asthma seems to be the best prophylaxis of epilepsy.

[Evaluation of cerebrospinal fluid proteins in patients with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE)]. / Ocena bialek plynu mózgowo-rdzeniowego u chorych na podostre stwardniejace zapalenie mózgu (SSPE).

CSF proteins of 62 patients with SSPE aged 6 to 26 years were analysed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The total IgG concentration in the CSF was increased to 16.8 +/- 10 mg/dl and the IgG index was raised to from 2.7 +/- 0.5 to 3.6 +/- 3.0. All SSPE patients had pathological subfractions gamma 4 and gamma 5. The per cent proportion of the gamma 1 subfraction was raised only in the youngest patients. A tendency was observed for higher values of the prealbumin:albumin index and the prealbumin: transferrin index. The youngest SSPE patients had a tendency for greater total protein concentration, lower prealbumin concentration, and highest IgG index values (3.6 +/- 3.0). In early disease period a tendency was noted for higher concentration of total protein, higher total IgG level and higher IgG index. These results suggest that SSPE patients have a constant stimulation of B-cells and variable increase of blood-brain barrier permeability.

[Epilepsy with myoclonic-astatic attacks (Lennox-Gastaut syndrome) with particularly unfavorable course]. / Padaczka z napadami miokloniczno-astatycznymi (zespól Lennoxa-Gastaut) o szczególnie niekorzystnym przebiegu.

Out of over 100 children with the Lennox-Gastaut syndrome observed in the Outpatient Clinic and Department of Paediatric Neurology, Children's Health Center the authors present 6 cases in which the course of the disease was progressive and devastating. The main signs were astatic-myoclonic and generalized seizures, regression of psychomotor development, followed by mental regression, pareses of extremities, decortication symptoms and somatic cachexia. The authors suggest that the clinical course, the character of epileptic seizures very poor prognosis in certain children with the Lennox-Gastaut syndrome make the syndrome similar in its clinical aspects to subacute sclerosing panencephalitis and require careful differential diagnosis for excluding the latter disease.

Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis in twins.

Development of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis after measles has been observed in twins although the disease seems to be quite exceptional in members of the same family, and no report has been found on its occurrence in twins.