EPILEPSY IN 2016 Part II
TECHNOLOGY & IMPROVEMENTS
SUDEP AND CANNABIS OIL
Researchers stimulate human amygdala to gain key insight into sudden unexpected death in epilepsy
Researchers have identified areas of the human brain in which breathing is controlled and, in some cases, impaired. Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy is becoming increasingly recognized as a very real and devastating problem in which impaired breathing is thought to play a critical role. Researchers believe breathing may be impaired during and after seizures, without the patient's knowledge.
Close up of a CT scan with brain (stock image). This study - which marks the first time researchers have stimulated the amygdala in humans and reported loss of breathing - is published in the July 15 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.
Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) is becoming increasingly recognized as a very real and devastating problem in which impaired breathing is thought to play a critical role. Researchers believe breathing may be impaired during and after seizures, without the patient's knowledge.
Cannabis-based drug reduces seizures in children with treatment-resistant epilepsy
Children and young adults with severe forms of epilepsy that does not respond to standard antiepileptic drugs have fewer seizures when treated with purified cannabinoid, according to a multi-center study led by researchers from UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital San Francisco.
"Better treatment for children with uncontrolled seizures is desperately needed," said Maria Roberta Cilio, MD, PhD, senior author and director of research at the UCSF Pediatric Epilepsy Center. "It's important to get seizure control at any age, but in children, uncontrolled seizures may impact brain and neurocognitive development, which can have an extraordinary effect on quality of life and contribute to progressive cognitive impairment."
Pharmaceutical CBD (cannabidiol) shows promise for children with severe epilepsy
Significant seizure reduction in studies using CBD in combination with AEDs
Around the globe there is high interest in the use of cannabidiol, for the treatment of people with epilepsy, especially children who have treatment-resistant forms of the disorder. Three studies presented at the American Epilepsy Society's 69th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia highlight emerging efficacy and safety data of Epidiolex, a pharmaceutical liquid formulation of cannabidiol. A fourth study highlights possible interactions of CBD with existing anti-epileptic drugs in animal models of seizures.
Around the globe there is high interest in the use of cannabidiol (CBD), a type of cannabinoid, for the treatment of people with epilepsy, especially children who have treatment-resistant forms of the disorder such as Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS) and Dravet Syndrome (DS). Three studies presented at the American Epilepsy Society's 69th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia highlight emerging efficacy and safety data of Epidiolex, a pharmaceutical liquid formulation of cannabidiol, which is currently undergoing U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized Phase 3 pivotal clinical trials in the United States and across the globe by GW Pharmaceuticals. A fourth study highlights possible interactions of CBD with existing anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs) in animal models of seizures.