Abstracts

Zonisamide has proven to be safe and efficacious as adjunctive therapy for patients with partial seizures and secondary generalization. For patients who experience a wide variety of seizure types, anticonvulsants with multiple mechanisms of action [ndash] such as zonisamide [ndash] may result in improved control across the spectrum of seizure types. This study includes patients with a variety of etiologies, all of whom have partial seizures with secondary generalization, who were treated with zonisamide as monotherapy.
This retrospective case review includes patients who had partial seizures with secondary generalization. Patients were chosen based on age, concomitant medical conditions, and failure of past antiepilepsy drug (AED) therapy. Other AEDs were discontinued prior to initiation of zonisamide. Seizure recurrence, adverse events, and changes in concomitant medication were monitored.
27 adult patients (12 male, 15 female, 17 to 84 years of age) with a variety of diagnoses were included in the study. Mean zonisamide dosage was 286 mg/d (range= 100 to 600 mg/d). Two patients discontinued zonisamide (1 due to gastrointestinal side effects and 1 due to incarceration), and 1 patient was lost to follow up. Patients who continued zonisamide (n=24) have been seizure free for a mean of 10.4 months (range= 0 to 28 months), and 9 patients (33.3%) have been seizure free for longer than one year. Ten patients (37.0%) reported adverse effects while taking zonisamide.
Zonisamide may be effective as monotherapy for patients who experience partial seizures with secondary generalization. Zonisamide was well tolerated, and few patients discontinued for adverse events. Additionally, several patients are seizure free on dosages of 100 or 200 mg/d, which, because of zonisamide[rsquo]s long half-life, can be taken once daily.
[Supported by: Elan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ]