LEVETIRACETAM SUMMARY
Levetiracetam is an antiepileptic drug available as a clear, colorless, grape-flavored liquid (100 mg/mL) for oral administration.
Levetiracetam is indicated as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial onset seizures in adults and children 4 years of age and older with epilepsy.
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NEWS HIGHLIGHTSMedia Articles Related to Levetiracetam
NeuroTherapeutics Pharma Receives Investment From The Epilepsy Therapy Project
Source: Epilepsy News From Medical News Today [2009.11.11]
NeuroTherapeutics Pharma, Inc., or NTP, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for central nervous system (CNS) disorders, today announced that it received a $100,000 investment from the Epilepsy Therapy Project. The Epilepsy Therapy Project invests in promising research efforts in order to help make new therapies a reality for patients, and the investment in NTP is one of the largest made in its history.
Ikano Therapeutics Receives Orphan Drug Designation For Epilepsy Drug
Source: Epilepsy News From Medical News Today [2009.11.11]
Ikano Therapeutics, Inc. (ITI) announced that it has received Orphan Drug designation for midazolam in the acute treatment of certain forms of epileptic seizure known as cluster seizures or alternatively, as acute repetitive seizures. ITI has a nasally administered form of midazolam called ITI-111 in late stage clinical development that is aimed at the treatment of these specific seizure types in an outpatient setting where other routes of administration can be difficult or inappropriate.
Alzheimer's Society Comment On The Use Of Epilepsy Drugs To Treat Alzheimer's
Source: Epilepsy News From Medical News Today [2009.10.29]
Epilepsy drugs could be developed as a treatment for neurodegenerative diseases according to research published in the journal Molecular Neurodegeneration. The study found that nerve cells lived longer when treated with T-type calcium-channel blockers, which are commonly used to treat epilepsy. 'This study is interesting since other research has shown that anti-convulsant drugs reduce the tangles of proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease.
Alzheimer's And Parkinson's Could Be Treated By Epilepsy Drugs
Source: Epilepsy News From Medical News Today [2009.10.29]
Researchers in the USA have discovered a potential new function for anti-epileptic drugs in treating neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. The study, published in BioMed Central's open access journal Molecular Neurodegeneration, found that neurons in the brain were protected after treatment with T-type calcium-channel blockers, which are commonly used to treat epilepsy.
Epilepsy Treatment Is A Possible Culprit For Development Of Schizophrenia
Source: Epilepsy News From Medical News Today [2009.10.21]
Researchers say antiepilectic drug treatments administered when the brain is developing appear to trigger schizophrenia-like behavior in animal models. In humans, having a history of seizures in infancy is a significant risk factor for development of schizophrenia later in life, but it is not known whether the elevated risk is due to seizures themselves, or from side effects antiepileptic drug (AED) treatment.
Published Studies Related to Levetiracetam
Neurocognitive effects of adjunctive levetiracetam in children with partial-onset seizures: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, noninferiority trial. [2009.08.21]
Summary Purpose: Evaluate potential neurocognitive effects of adjunctive levetiracetam in children with inadequately controlled partial-onset seizures (POS)... Levetiracetam was effective and well tolerated.
Levetiracetam as add-on therapy for idiopathic generalized epilepsy syndromes with onset during adolescence: analysis of two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies. [2009.07]
PURPOSE: To assess the efficacy and tolerability of adjunctive levetiracetam in idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE) syndromes with onset during adolescence: juvenile absence epilepsy (JAE), juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME), and generalized tonic-clonic seizures on awakening (GTCSA)... CONCLUSIONS: Adjunctive levetiracetam was well tolerated and provided effective seizure control over 16-24 weeks in patients with insufficiently controlled IGE syndromes with onset during adolescence (JAE, JME, and GTCSA), supporting levetiracetam's broad spectrum of efficacy.
Safety and feasibility of switching from phenytoin to levetiracetam monotherapy for glioma-related seizure control following craniotomy: a randomized phase II pilot study. [2009.07]
Seizures are common in patients with gliomas, and phenytoin (PHT) is frequently used to control tumor-related seizures. PHT, however, has many undesirable side effects (SEs) and drug interactions with glioma chemotherapy...
Levetiracetam in spinal cord injury pain: a randomized controlled trial. [2009.06.09]
Study design:A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover, multicenter trial. A 1-week baseline period was followed by two treatment periods of 5 weeks duration with levetiracetam increased from 500 mg b.i.d... Only two patients continued levetiracetam treatment following the trial, and one patient was still in levetiracetam treatment at the 6-month follow-up.
Pilot study to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of levetiracetam (Keppra) in treatment of patients with trigeminal neuralgia. [2009.06]
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The objective of this study was to determine whether levetiracetam (LEV) is an effective drug for treatment of trigeminal neuralgia (TN)... CONCLUSION: Given its established safety profile, a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial of LEV using enhancement enrollment design is needed to confirm these open-labelled findings using a wide variety of outcome measures.
Clinical Trials Related to Levetiracetam
Levetiracetam (Keppra) Tolerability in Cocaine Abusing Methadone-Maintained Patients. [Completed]
The proposed investigation will use methadone maintained patients who have concurrent cocaine
dependence in order to take advantage of the excellent (over 80%) treatment retention in this
patient group and to maximize treatment compliance by daily observed medication with both
methadone and levetiracetam. In the initial patients we will explore the tolerability of
escalating doses of levetiracetam as well as its potential role in reducing cocaine use, as
monitored by self-report and verified by three-times weekly urine toxicology testing in
methadone treated patients. The specific aim of this study is to evaluate the tolerability and
efficacy of levetiracetam 3 grams/day in modifying cocaine-using behavior, reducing cocaine
craving and attenuating cocaine's reinforcing effect among methadone-maintained patients
A Study Of The Safety And Efficacy Of Levetiracetam (Keppra®) (Ucb L059) In Children With Epilepsy [Completed]
The open-label study to allow pediatric patients who have participated in prior
Levetiracetam (Keppra®) studies to continue their treatment with adequate monitoring and
standardized follow-up care until Levetiracetam (Keppra®) is approved for use in children or
until the completion of the development program for pediatrics.
Long Term Follow-up Study With Levetiracetam XR (Keppra XR) for Partial Seizures [Enrolling by invitation]
To provide continued treatment of Keppra XR (Levetiracetam XR) and to assess the long term
safety of Keppra XR in patients with partial onset seizures.
Levetiracetam in the Treatment of Patients With Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) [Completed]
An Open Long Term Follow up Study of L059 (Levetiracetam) in Epilepsy Patients With Partial Onset Seizures [Active, not recruiting]
This study is planned to evaluate the safety and efficacy of L059 (levetiracetam) in
long-term administration in patients who completed a previous study.
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PATIENT REVIEWS / RATINGS / COMMENTSBased on a total of 1 ratings/reviews, Levetiracetam has an overall score of 3. The effectiveness score is 8 and the side effect score is 2. The scores are on ten point scale: 10 - best, 1 - worst.
| | Levetiracetam review by 50 year old female patient | | | Rating |
| Overall rating: | |   |
| Effectiveness: | | Considerably Effective |
| Side effects: | | Extremely Severe Side Effects | | |
Treatment Info |
| Condition / reason: | | right temporal lobe epilepsy |
| Dosage & duration: | | 4000 daily (dosage frequency: 2000 mg. twice a day) for the period of I have been taking it for 9 mths. |
| Other conditions: | | hypothyroid, Atrial-Fib,Stroke-April '06 |
| Other drugs taken: | | syntroid, valium, coumadin, atenolol | | |
Reported Results |
| Benefits: | | In the beginning my seizures seemed to decrease, however at the time I was also on Depakote and Diamox as well as valium for right temporal lobe epilepsy; my doctor added keppra before he started weaning me off the depakote and diamox. I was feeling a lot better on all those meds. Then just the Keppra. |
| Side effects: | | Side effects= Intermittent Headaches,weakness,shaky and Double Vision, poor muscle coordination, problem with movement, walking, Abnormal Gait, behavioral changes, anger,weight loss, slurred speech, & memory loss. |
| Comments: | | I started on Keppra in Feb. '09, at first I thought it was the miracle drug. Boy was I wrong! At the time I was also on Depakote, Diamox and valium. First the Doctor added Keppra and began weaning me off the Depakote ER 500mg pm. 250mg. am. It took awhile to get off Depakote because I kept having effects from being weaned off it after being on it for 25 years. Then a few months later he started to wean me off of diamox, which I stopped a week ago, after a long process of being weaned off that drug. Now on Keppra alone with valium, I feel horrible and no heip from my Neurologist. I feel completely alone and with no help in sight! |
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Page last updated: 2009-11-11
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