Community Forum Archive
The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.
Medication does not control absence seizures
Wed, 05/05/2010 - 21:34Medication does not control absence seizures for my son.
My 9-year-old son has had generalized absence seizures for about 18 months now. He has never had any other type of seizure. He started out on Zarontin, which controlled the seizures but made him feel terrible and caused stomach pain. He then took Lamictal which successfully controlled his seizures with no side effects for a year. Then, it gradually stopped working for him, even on the highest dose for his weight. We then switched him to Depakote, which left him feeling bad and having stomach pain as well. His blood work confirmed that it was too much for him, even on a low dose. Now we are trying Lamictal again, and have tried adding Klonopin, neither of which seems to be helping. He is still having 15 to 20 absence seizures every day. From what his ped neuro has said, and from the research I have done, there just isn't anything else out there for his type of seizures. Is anyone else going through this? Or found another answer? It is very frustrating for him and for me.
Comments
Re: Medication does not control absence seizures
Submitted by fetupmom on Sun, 2012-04-29 - 18:47
Re: Medication does not control absence seizures
Submitted by babzy on Sun, 2012-04-29 - 23:49
hi kimbe
sorry to hear your son is having that many in a day
have you tried keppra? I have had complex partial seizures all my life. For the most part i was on dilantin & mysoline. I lived and adjusted my life to having these complex partial seizures every month. Alas i came upon a dr. who convinced me to do a drug trial. It was the most difficult task to go through but here i am 5 yrs later and seizure free.
I started on a 2 drug therapy and then a three drug therapy only to discover no drug was going to make me seizure free.My seizures were stemming from the temporal lobe,they were in fact the same type of seizure your son is experiencing. Do you know what part of the brain the seizures are coming from? When I was going through the drug trials, i found the meds did not stop the siezures but made me experience them differently. Does your son get auras? Can he sense or feel anything prior to the seizure? I found that if a drug did not work the 1rst time, there was no point in trying it again. Although my drug trial consisted of trying 10 different drugs, I did read somewhere that after 3 failed drugs,the dr. should look into other options such as diet, vagal nerve stimulator or surgery.
If the dr.s can find where your son's seizures are originating from, there is a high possibility that it can be rectified through surgery.. I dont mean to alrm you , in this modern day of technology,surgery is an option that has become easier to perform and the outcome is greater than any drug therapy. I am speaking from experience.I hope your son has seizure freedom some day soon unlike myself that waited 40 yrs to acheive. I am taking keppra and dilantin still but have decreased someof my meds now. it has been 3 yrs since my last complex partial seizure..
I hope this becomes of great help to you and your son.My dr. is an epileptologist and i am from massachusetts. good luck & good health babzy
hi kimbe
sorry to hear your son is having that many in a day
have you tried keppra? I have had complex partial seizures all my life. For the most part i was on dilantin & mysoline. I lived and adjusted my life to having these complex partial seizures every month. Alas i came upon a dr. who convinced me to do a drug trial. It was the most difficult task to go through but here i am 5 yrs later and seizure free.
I started on a 2 drug therapy and then a three drug therapy only to discover no drug was going to make me seizure free.My seizures were stemming from the temporal lobe,they were in fact the same type of seizure your son is experiencing. Do you know what part of the brain the seizures are coming from? When I was going through the drug trials, i found the meds did not stop the siezures but made me experience them differently. Does your son get auras? Can he sense or feel anything prior to the seizure? I found that if a drug did not work the 1rst time, there was no point in trying it again. Although my drug trial consisted of trying 10 different drugs, I did read somewhere that after 3 failed drugs,the dr. should look into other options such as diet, vagal nerve stimulator or surgery.
If the dr.s can find where your son's seizures are originating from, there is a high possibility that it can be rectified through surgery.. I dont mean to alrm you , in this modern day of technology,surgery is an option that has become easier to perform and the outcome is greater than any drug therapy. I am speaking from experience.I hope your son has seizure freedom some day soon unlike myself that waited 40 yrs to acheive. I am taking keppra and dilantin still but have decreased someof my meds now. it has been 3 yrs since my last complex partial seizure..
I hope this becomes of great help to you and your son.My dr. is an epileptologist and i am from massachusetts. good luck & good health babzy
Re: Medication does not control absence seizures
Submitted by Yale Absence Epilepsy Study on Tue, 2012-11-27 - 11:44
.