Monotherapy with Gabapentin for partial epilepsy: A review of 30 cases

Abstract

We attempted to evaluate the efficacy of Gabapentin (GBP) monotherapy as a treatment for partial epilepsy. We reviewed the medical records of 30 consecutive patients treated with GBP monotherapy at our epilepsy center. Twenty-nine of these patients had previously been treated with antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) (median number of two drugs). Only one patient had taken GBP as an adjunctive medication. Median duration of GBP monotherapy was 6 months, and the median daily dose was 1200 mg. During treatment with GBP, 17 patients (57%) experienced a ⩾ 25% reduction in seizure frequency, with nine patients reporting a ⩾ 90% reduction. Twelve patients reported no change in seizure frequency; however, six of these patients had experienced less than one seizure every 6 months prior to treatment with GBP, and therefore maintained fairly good control. Six patients discontinued GBP due to poorly controlled seizures. Adverse effects were experienced by 13 patients, but led to discontinuation of GBP in only four cases. Our results suggest that monotherapy with GBP can be effective in partial epilepsy and is often well tolerated.