Journal article
Cognitive and mood effects of phenobarbital treatment in people with epilepsy in rural China: A prospective study
D Ding, Q Zhang, D Zhou, W Lin, Q Wu, J Sun, Q Zhao, P Yu, W Wang, J Wu, GS Bell, P Kwan, HM De Boer, S Li, PJ Thompson, Z Hong, JW Sander, L Sander
Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry | BMJ PUBLISHING GROUP | Published : 2012
Abstract
Background: Phenobarbital is an effective treatment for epilepsy but concerns remain over its potential neurocognitive toxicity. This prospective study evaluated the effects of phenobarbital treatment on cognition and mood in people with epilepsy in rural China. Methods: We recruited 144 adults with convulsive seizures and 144 healthy controls from six sites in rural China. People with epilepsy were treated with phenobarbital monotherapy for 12 months. At baseline, and at 3, 6 and 12 months, cases and controls were evaluated with a battery of neuropsychological tests: the Mini-Mental State Examination, the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, a digit span test, a verbal fluency test, an auditor..
View full abstractGrants
Funding Acknowledgements
The project was funded by the Chinese Ministry of Health and Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland. The sponsors were not directly involved in the study design, in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, in the writing of the report or in the decision to submit the paper for publication. GSB, PJT and JWS are based at University College London Hospitals/University College London, which receives a proportion of funding from the Department of Health's National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centres funding scheme. JWS is supported by the Dr Marvin Weil Epilepsy Research Fund.DZ serves on the editorial advisory boards of Neural Regeneration Research and Chinese Journal of Neurology; has received research support from the Chinese Ministry of Health, the Chinese Medical Association and the China Association Against Epilepsy; and has been a commissioner of the neurology branch of the Chinese Medical Association. GSB's husband works for, and has shares in, GlaxoSmithKline. PK serves on the scientific advisory board of Pfizer and receives research grants from Eisai, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and UCB Pharma. ZH serves on the editorial advisory boards of the Chinese Journal of Neurology; has received research support from the Chinese Ministry of health and the China Association Against Epilepsy; and has been a commissioner of the neurology branch of the Chinese Medical Association. JWS served on scientific advisory boards for GlaxoSmithKline, Eisai and UCB; has received funding for travel from UCB and Janssen; serves on the editorial boards of Lancet Neurology and Epilepsia; serves on the speaker's bureaus of UCB and GlaxosmithKline; and has received research support from UCB, Eisai, the NIH, the European Union Seventh Framework Programme, the Wellcome Trust, WHO, the National Epilepsy Funds of the Netherlands and the Epilepsy Society.