Affiliation:
1. Department of Neurology Vanderbilt University Medical Center Nashville Tennessee USA
2. Department of Neuroscience, Alfred Center Monash University Melbourne Victoria Australia
3. Department of Neurology Mayo Clinic Rochester Minnesota USA
4. Westchester Medical Center Valhalla New York USA
5. School of Pharmacy University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison Wisconsin USA
6. Mid‐Atlantic Epilepsy and Sleep Center Bethesda Maryland USA
7. Department of Neurology New York University, Grossman School of Medicine New York New York USA
Abstract
AbstractObjectiveThis study was undertaken to ascertain the natural history and patterns of antiseizure medication (ASM) use in newly diagnosed focal epilepsy patients who were initially started on monotherapy.MethodsThe data were derived from the Human Epilepsy Project. Differences between the durations of the most commonly first prescribed ASM monotherapies were assessed using a Cox proportional hazards model. Subjects were classified into three groups: monotherapy, sequential monotherapy, and polytherapy.ResultsA total of 443 patients were included in the analysis, with a median age of 32 years (interquartile range [IQR] = 20–44) and median follow‐up time of 3.2 years (IQR = 2.4–4.2); 161 (36.3%) patients remained on monotherapy with their initially prescribed ASM at the time of their last follow‐up. The mean (SEM) and median (IQR) duration that patients stayed on monotherapy with their initial ASM was 2.1 (2.0–2.2) and 1.9 (.3–3.5) years, respectively. The most commonly prescribed initial ASM was levetiracetam (254, 57.3%), followed by lamotrigine (77, 17.4%), oxcarbazepine (38, 8.6%), and carbamazepine (24, 5.4%). Among those who did not remain on the initial monotherapy, 167 (59.2%) transitioned to another ASM as monotherapy (sequential monotherapy) and 115 (40.8%) ended up on polytherapy. Patients remained significantly longer on lamotrigine (mean = 2.8 years, median = 3.1 years) compared to levetiracetam (mean = 2.0 years, median = 1.5 years) as a first prescribed medication (hazard ratio = 1.5, 95% confidence interval = 1.0–2.2). As the study progressed, the proportion of patients on lamotrigine, carbamazepine, and oxcarbazepine as well as other sodium channel agents increased from a little more than one third (154, 34.8%) of patients to more than two thirds (303, 68.4%) of patients.SignificanceSlightly more than one third of focal epilepsy patients remain on monotherapy with their first prescribed ASM. Approximately three in five patients transition to monotherapy with another ASM, whereas approximately two in five end up on polytherapy. Patients remain on lamotrigine for a longer duration compared to levetiracetam when it is prescribed as the initial monotherapy.
Subject
Neurology (clinical),Neurology
Cited by
1 articles.
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