All issues > Volume 36(8); 1993

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1993;36(8):1139-1145. Published online August 15, 1993.

The Effectf Zonisamide in Children with Refractory Epilepsies

Ki Joong KJ Kim¹, Soo Ahn SA Chae¹, Tae Sung TS Ko¹, Dong Wook DW Kim¹, Yong Seung YS Hwang¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, Seoul National University, College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Zonisamide was amministered to 20 patients with refractory epileptic seizures. The mean duration of the administration was 6 months, and the mean dosage was 7.2mg/kg/day. The efficacy of zonisamide was rated remarkable in 15% of the cases, improvement in 40%, and no change in 45%. The response rates of zonisamide were 62.5% for myoclonic seizures, 50% for tonic-clonic seizures, 80% for atonic seizures and 33.3% for atypical absence seizures. There was no correlation between the clinical response and dose or serum concentration of the drug. The adverse effects were observed in 35% of the cases which were drowsiness, dizziness, ataxia, nausea, and vomiting. In all cases, however, the administration of zonisamide could be continued.

Keywords :Zonisamide, Refractory epilepsies