The effect of ethyl loflazepate on refractory epilepsy

In order to evaluate the effect of ethyl loflazepate (LOF), we performed a clinical and electroencephalographic study on patients with childhood refractory epilepsy. We investigated the effect of LOF add-on therapy on clinical seizures and EEGs as well as side effects in 41 patients, ranging in age from 3 months to 23 years 6 months. The patients were treated with LOF for at least three months. LOF had marked or moderate effects in 25 patients (60.9%). However, in 11 patients, these effects were transient and disappeared within the first three months. LOF was more effective for symptomatic generalized epilepsy than other types of epilepsy. LOF was most effective for brief tonic seizures or tonic seizures. Epileptic discharges were suppressed or decreased in five of 14 patients who responded well to LOF. The maximum dose was well correlated with blood level (R=0.691). Twenty patients (49%) showed mild side effects, such as sleepiness and hypersalivation.