Journal article

The control of treated generalized and focal epilepsies during pregnancy

FJE Vajda, TJO Brien, JE Graham, AA Hitchcock, P Perucca, CM Lander, MJ Eadie

Epilepsy and Behavior | ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE | Published : 2021

Abstract

Objectives: To examine factors contributing to failure to achieve full seizure control during pregnancy in women with anti-seizure medication (ASM) treated generalized epilepsy compared with focal epilepsy. Results: Full seizure control was not attained in 51.4% of 1223 pregnancies of women with focal epilepsies in the Australian Pregnancy Register, and in 38.7% of 1026 pregnancies in women with generalized epilepsy (P < 0.05). For convulsive seizures only, the corresponding figures of 20.8% and 22.9% were reasonably similar. Where seizures had occurred in the pre-pregnancy year, 82.5% of the focal epilepsy pregnancies were seizure affected, and 70.1% of the generalized epilepsy ones (P < 0...

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Grants

Awarded by Sanofi


Funding Acknowledgements

We are grateful to professional and lay colleagues and bodies for referring patients to the APR, and to the Scientific Advisory Board and the Ethical Research Committees of St. Vincent's Hospital, Monash Medical Centre, the Royal Melbourne Hospital and other institutions for continuing ethics oversight of the APR. Over its years, The Epilepsy Society of Australia, The Royal Melbourne Hospital Neuroscience Foundation, Epilepsy Australia, the NHMRC and the pharmaceutical companies Sanofi-Aventis, UCB Pharma, Janssen-Cilag, Novartis, Sci-Gen, Eisai and Genzyme have provided financial support towards maintaining the Register.