A range of antiepileptic drugs do not affect the recovery of consciousness in vegetative and minimally conscious states

作者：Bagnato Sergio^*; Boccagni Cristina; Sant'Angelo Antonino; Galardi Giuseppe

来源：Epilepsy and Behavior, 2013, 27(2): 365-370.

DOI：10.1016/j.yebeh.2013.02.005

• Unresponsive wakefulness syndrome
• Epilepsy
• Epileptic seizures
• Disorders of consciousness
• Levels of cognitive functioning (LCF)
• Outcome
• AEDs
• Phenobarbital
• Carbamazepine
• Levetiracetam

Since most antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) have cognitive effects, the aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of AED therapy on the recovery of consciousness in 103 consecutive patients in a vegetative or minimally conscious state (VS, MCS). The levels of cognitive functioning (LCF) score was retrospectively compared after a three-month period of rehabilitation between patients who were medicated (n = 54) and patients who were not medicated (n = 49) with AEDs. Mean LCF scores in AED-medicated and nonmedicated patients were 2.2 +/- 0.7 and 2.3 +/- 0.8 at admission and 3.8 +/- 2.2 and 3.7 +/- 2.1 after three months, respectively (p values > 0.05). These results did not change when we compared patients with the same etiology separately, with the same disorder of consciousness only, or patients treated with only one or more than one AED. In conclusion, AEDs did not affect the recovery of consciousness in a large cohort of patients in a VS or MCS following an acute brain injury.

• 出版日期2013-5