Keppra, levetiracetam

BACKGROUND: Convulsive status epilepticus is the most common neurological emergency in children. Its management is important to avoid or minimise neurological morbidity and death. The current first-choice second-line drug is phenytoin (Epanutin, Pfizer Inc., New York, NY, USA), for which there is no robust scientific evidence. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether phenytoin or levetiracetam (Keppra, UCB Pharma, Brussels, Belgium) is the more clinically effective intravenous second-line treatment of paediatric convulsive status epilepticus and to help better inform its management...

The amount of freely available human phenotypic data is increasing daily, and yet little is known about the types of inferences or identifying characteristics that could reasonably be drawn from that data using new statistical methods. One data type of particular interest is electroencephalographical (EEG) data, collected noninvasively from humans in various behavioral contexts. The Temple University EEG corpus associates thousands of hours of de-identified EEG records with contemporaneous physician reports that include metadata that might be expected to show a measurable correlation with characteristics of the recorded signal...

OBJECTIVE: To identify clinical characteristics common among epileptic patients prescribed levetiracetam who report suicidal ideation or who exhibit suicidal behavior. A case is also provided that highlights the need for increased vigilance for neuropsychiatric sequelae in fragile epileptic patients prescribed levetiracetam, especially post dosage adjustment. DATA SOURCES: PubMed was queried with no time limitation to December 2018 using a combination of controlled terms...

PURPOSE: Current synaptic vesicle 2A (SV2A) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agents include the nanomolar affinity probes [11 C]UCB-J and [18 F]UCB-H derived from the anti-epileptic drug levitaracetam (Keppra®). An industry-utilized "de-risking" approach was used to carry out initial pharmacological characterization and to assess potential next-generation candidates amenable to F-18 radiolabeling for preliminary evaluation. PROCEDURES: Radioligand binding methods were employed in mammalian brain homogenates to determine the SV2A affinity (Kd ) and maximal binding capacity (Bmax ) of [3 H]UCB-J...

BACKGROUND: Improved quality of life (QoL) is one of the most important objectives in the treatment of epilepsy. Recent prospective, clinical studies proved no significant differences between brand antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) and their generic equivalents in terms of seizure control, pharmacokinetics, or safety. In this study, we focused on possible changes in QoL and adverse events in connection with generic substitution of levetiracetam (LEV). METHODS: This was a prospective, naturalistic, two-cohort, twin-center study...

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to determine if education material targeting children would improve understanding of medication indication, administration, and common side effects in pediatric subjects. METHODS: This cross-sectional pilot study included students 7 to 11 years old from a suburban elementary school. Study participants were read either the US Food and Drug Administration-approved adult medication leaflet or a pediatric medication leaflet created at a first-grade reading level for levetiracetam (Keppra, UCB, Inc, Atlanta, GA)...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether switching from branded levetiracetam (Keppra® ) to a levetiracetam generic equivalent product (Matever® ) in an epilepsy cohort could provide adequate results in terms of seizure control and tolerability. METHODS: To be eligible for the study, patients had to have been taking Keppra® as monotherapy or polytherapy for at least 6 months. Between March 2013 and April 2017, patients were invited to switch to Matever® as part of their follow-up...

OBJECTIVES: Generic antiepileptic drugs represent a measure to maximize cost saving. Levetiracetam (LEV) is one of most commonly used and effective antiepileptic drugs. The objective of our work was to demonstrate the effectiveness and safety of overnight switch from monotherapy with Keppra (original drug) to epitiram (generic drug) at the same dose. METHODS: In our observational study, we consecutively enrolled 37 seizure-free patients with epilepsy who expressed the wish to switch to a generic drug for economic reasons...

OBJECTIVES: To report the results of a combined case series analysis of subcutaneous levetiracetam (Keppra) for the management of seizures in palliative care patients. METHODS: A comprehensive literature review on the use of subcutaneous levetiracetam was performed, and these data were combined with a prospective observational audit of its use in terminal care undertaken in a regional palliative care network. RESULTS: 7 papers were identified from the literature review-four case reports and three observational case series-reporting on a total of 53 cases where subcutaneous levetiracetam was administered...

BACKGROUND: Switching patients from a branded antiepileptic drug (AED) to a generic is often challenging. Several studies have shown that considerable proportions of patients report deteriorated seizure control or increased adverse effects, enforcing a switchback to the original drug. Since tolerability and seizure control usually correlate with AED serum concentrations, we examined the fluctuation of levetiracetam (LEV) serum concentrations in patients with epilepsy before and after generic substitution...

Sporadic late-onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD), the most common form of dementia in the elderly, causes progressive and severe loss of cognitive abilities. With greater numbers of people living to advanced ages, LOAD will increasingly burden both the healthcare system and society. There are currently no available disease-modifying therapies, and the failure of several recent pathology-based strategies has highlighted the urgent need for effective therapeutic targets. With aging as the greatest risk factor for LOAD, targeting mechanisms by which aging contributes to disease could prove an effective strategy to delay progression to clinical dementia by intervention in elderly individuals in an early prodromal stage of disease...

PURPOSE: The therapeutic equivalence of generic and brand antiepileptic drugs, based on studies performed on healthy volunteers, has been questioned. We compare, in a routine clinical setting, brand versus generic levetiracetam (LEV) bioequivalence in patients with epilepsy and also the clinical efficacy and tolerability of the substitution. METHODS: A prospective, open-label, non-randomized, steady-state, multiple-dose, bioequivalence study was conducted in 12 patients with epilepsy (5 females), with a mean age of 38...

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A recently identified mechanism for oligomeric Aβ-induced glutamate release from astrocytes involves intracellular Ca elevation, potentially by Ca-dependent vesicular release. Evidence suggests that levetiracetam (LEV; Keppra), an antiepileptic drug, can improve cognitive performance in both humans with mild cognitive impairment and animal models of Alzheimer disease. Because LEV acts by modulating neurotransmitter release from neurons by interaction with synaptic vesicles, we tested the effect of LEV on Aβ-induced astrocytic release of glutamate...

BACKGROUND: Rapidly disintegrating or 'fast-melt' oral formulations have been developed recently to facilitate drug intake among patients. Even though these formulations have helped to improve therapy adherence, some of their limitations include: the dissolution time, their facility to be swallowed, and the dosage strengths that may be accommodated. To overcome these limitations, a novel, porous, quickly disintegrating, and easier-to-swallow fast-melt formulation based on powder-liquid, three-dimensional printing (3DP) technology has been developed...

Surveys among women with epilepsy (WWE) show that they receive their essential pregnancy-related information from many sources, including the internet. Our aim was to assess the types of websites provided by searching Google for the use of four antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) during pregnancy and lactation. The search was performed on 40 computers used by health-care professionals, on 40 computers used by nonhealth-care professionals, and on 5 computers used by WWE in Israel and on 8 computers used by nonhealth-care professionals in the U...

Modified-release or extended-release (XR) formulations are used to decrease the frequency of dosing for drugs with rapid elimination, to improve convenience and adherence. Use of a modified-release formulation can decrease the peak to trough fluctuations in serum concentrations and theoretically improve the therapeutic benefit of the drug, by decreasing adverse events associated with the higher peak concentrations. Once-daily formulations of lamotrigine (Lamictal XR(®)), levetiracetam (Keppra XR(®)), oxcarbazepine (Oxtellar XR(®), Apydan(®) extent) and topiramate (Qudexy XR™, Trokendi XR™) are approved for the treatment of focal and/or generalized onset seizures...

BACKGROUND: Seizures account for significant morbidity and mortality early in the course of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Although there is sufficient literature suggesting short-term benefits of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) in post-TBI patients, there has been no study to suggest a time frame for continuing AEDs in patients who have undergone a decompressive craniectomy for more severe TBI. We examined trends in a level-II trauma center in southern California that may provide guidelines for AED treatment in craniectomy patients...

Levetiracetam, trade name Keppra, is a new second generation antiepileptic drug that is being increasingly used in brain tumor patients. In patients suffering with brain tumors, seizures are one of the leading neurologic complications being seen in more than 30% of patients. Unlike other antiepileptic drugs, levetiracetam is proposed to bind to a synaptic vesicle protein inhibiting calcium release. Brain tumor patients are frequently on chemotherapy or other drugs that induce cytochrome P450, causing significant drug interactions...

BACKGROUND: A simple LC-MS/MS method was developed and validated for the quantification of levetiracetam (LEV, Keppra®), a broad-spectrum antiepileptic drug (AED) in rat dried blood spots (DBS). LEV was simply extracted with methanol spiked with adenosine (ADE) as IS before LC-MS/MS analysis. The correlation between the DBS and plasma concentrations of LEV was also determined. RESULTS: Linearity was from 0.067-60 µg/ml for LEV in DBS samples. The intra- and inter-day accuracy and precision of the assay met validation acceptance criteria...