@article{ref1,
title="Levetiracetam in newly diagnosed late-onset post-stroke seizures: a prospective observational study",
journal="Epilepsy research",
year="2008",
author="Belcastro, Vincenzo and Costa, Cinzia and Galletti, Francesca and Autuori, Alessia and Pierguidi, Laura and Pisani, Francesco and Calabresi, Paolo and Parnetti, Lucilla",
volume="82",
number="2-3",
pages="223-226",
abstract="Levetiracetam (LEV) monotherapy was investigated in 35 patients (pts) (16M/19F, 71.9+/-7.3 years of age) with late-onset post-stroke seizures (i.e. seizures occurring at least 2 weeks after an ischemic stroke) in a prospective open-label study. Overall, 27 pts (77.1%) achieved a condition of seizure freedom (defined as 1 year without seizures): 19 (54.3%) at a daily LEV dose of 1000mg, 7 (20.0%) at 1500mg, 1 (2.8%) at 2000mg. Four pts (11.4%) discontinued the drug because of intolerable side effects (drowsiness associated to gait disturbance in 1 pt, and aggressive behaviour in the remaining 3 pts); 3 pts were unresponsive at a dose of 3000mg, and 1 pt was lost at follow-up. These observations suggest that LEV exhibits safety and efficacy profiles which make it an optimal candidate as a first-choice drug against post-stroke seizures.<p /><p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0920-1211",
doi="10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2008.08.008",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2008.08.008"
}