When can antiepileptic drugs be safely withdrawn?
- Department of Neurology, Radcliffe Infirmary, Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6HE, UK
- yvonnehart{at}compuserve.com
A further attempt to assess risk of recurrent seizures if medication is discontinued
One of the more difficult questions in the management of people with epilepsy is, “When can antiepileptic drugs be safely withdrawn? For adults, the reasons for continuing medication are often as much social as medical, and the issue of driving is frequently a major factor in the equation. Other considerations include the impact of recurrent seizures on employment, the possibility of teratogenicity in women continuing medication, the risk of injury secondary to seizures, and, increasingly recognised in recent years, the risk of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP). The situation is …
