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Keppra (Levetiracetam) - Reviews, Ratings, Comments by Patients

 
 



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Below are Keppra (Levetiracetam) reviews, ratings, comments submitted by patients and caregivers. Based on a total of 5 ratings/reviews, Keppra has an overall score of 6.60. The effectiveness score is 8.80 and the side effect score is 6.40. The scores are on ten point scale: 10 - best, 1 - worst. This information is not vetted and should not be cosidered as clinical evidence.
 

Keppra review by 37 year old female patient

  Rating
Overall rating:  
Effectiveness:   Considerably Effective
Side effects:   Mild Side Effects
  
Treatment Info
Condition / reason:   seizure disorder
Dosage & duration:   1000mg taken twice daily for the period of 6 months
Other conditions:   AVM, depression
Other drugs taken:   Lexapro
  
Reported Results
Benefits:   Benefits were milder and less frequent seizures.
Side effects:   Tiredness
Comments:   Started taking after brain injury due to AVM and radiation treatment. First seizure was major, requiring hospitalization. After taking Keppra, a susequent seizure was very mild.

 

Keppra review by 38 year old female patient

  Rating
Overall rating:  
Effectiveness:   Highly Effective
Side effects:   Extremely Severe Side Effects
  
Treatment Info
Condition / reason:   grand mal seizures
Dosage & duration:   500mg. twice a day taken twice a day for the period of 6 yrs
Other conditions:   none
Other drugs taken:   none
  
Reported Results
Benefits:   seizures dissipated
Side effects:   brain fog, slurring, neurological switching, i.e, right hand dominant at times would switch to left, thyroid malfunction, high FSH levels and very early perimenopause, memory lapses, cognitive dysfunction
Comments:   Began with Keppra 1000mg..wasn't enough to control seizure activity - increased to 1500 mg per day and was non-functional. Reduced to 1000 mg per day and sought alternative methods..research by Harvard showed magnesium deficit in those with seizure disorders..began magnesium injections and increased essential fatty acids..through proper nutrition, supplementation and accupuncture, no more seizure medication and seizure free...do want to note that seizures began during the spraying of the neurotoxin anvil for the West Nile virus.

 

Keppra review by 38 year old female patient

  Rating
Overall rating:  
Effectiveness:   Highly Effective
Side effects:   Mild Side Effects
  
Treatment Info
Condition / reason:   anti seizure
Dosage & duration:   750mg taken everyday for the rest of my life for the period of 3 years
Other conditions:   none
Other drugs taken:   none
  
Reported Results
Benefits:   no seizure activity since i started taking this drug
Side effects:   early on i was having problems sleeping, s i got used to the medication, that has gone away.
Comments:   Taking 750 mg split into 2 doses, taking morning and evening, i have small seizures as a result of a brain tumor removal received 4 years ago.

 

Keppra review by 54 year old female patient

  Rating
Overall rating:  
Effectiveness:   Highly Effective
Side effects:   Mild Side Effects
  
Treatment Info
Condition / reason:   Simple partial seizure
Dosage & duration:   250mg taken 2x daily for the period of On-going
Other conditions:   Asthma
Other drugs taken:   Singulair, Allegra, Albuterol, Flovent, Flonase
  
Reported Results
Benefits:   The benefits of taking all these asthma medications is that I have been pretty much symptom free. The Flovent has been particularly helpful in preventing flareups of my symptoms which has greatly reduced the need for my Albuterol. The benefits of taking the Keppra is that I have only had one seizure episode since I began treatment in 2006. The episode lasted only seconds.
Side effects:   I have no side effects from taking my asthma medications. I experienced a lack of enery or just feeling tired when I first started taking the Keppra in the morning. I do not have that system any longer.
Comments:   I take my asthma medications daily and will continue to do so for the rest of my life. The same is true for my seizure medication.

 

Keppra review by care giver of 20 year old female patient

  Rating
Overall rating:  
Effectiveness:   Moderately Effective
Side effects:   Moderate Side Effects
  
Treatment Info
Condition / reason:   for epilepsy
Dosage & duration:   1500 mgs. a day taken twice a day for the period of still on it
Other conditions:   none
Other drugs taken:   klonopin (to aid effectiveness of Keppra)
  
Reported Results
Benefits:   We aren't sure. We wonder if it is really controlling the seizures at all. We are hoping our daughter can get testing to determine if her seizures are catamenial in nature. She was on carbatrol with complete control, but was switched to Keppra due to her upcoming marriage (much lower risk of birth defects and ability to use birth control pills while on it). She was completely weaned off of Carbatrol at one point and went almost 8 weeks with no seizure activity. She also went 5-1/2 months with no seizure activity with Keppra before having a tonic clonic seizure. Due to her history of seizures (started at the age of 14 a couple of months after she started her period), and the ability to go for long periods of time without problems, we wonder if she is having extreme spikes in estrogen when she ovulates from time to time. We hope that our neurologist will work with an endocrinologist and gynocologist to see if there is some validity to our theory. The goal is to get her back under complete control.
Side effects:   The main side effect we noticed with Keppra was weight loss. She dropped 20 lbs. in less than a month. She had a very suppressed appetite for the first 6 or 7 months. She has since gained back maybe 5 lbs. but continues to have a suppressed appetite just not as much as at first.
Comments:   She takes 3 pills in the morning upon waking and 2 pills at night before going to bed. She was taking 1 Klonopin pill but is now taking Lamictal and is gradually increasing the dosage. Her neurologist is weaning her off of Keppra and gradually moving her to Lamictal.
 


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