"Preventing seizures is a critical part of protecting a patient's brain from further injury following trauma or stroke," Szaflarski says. The study sought to establish the drug's safety and effectiveness in this group of patients.Īlthough the number of patients in the study was small (52), the results appear to be an indicator that Keppra might be an appropriate alternative to Dilantin for preventing seizures and improving outcomes of patients who have suffered a traumatic brain injury or subarachnoid hemorrhage. Keppra is an established anti-seizure medication given to people with epilepsy (defined as having more than one seizure), but its effectiveness for preventing seizures in patients after a brain injury had not been proven. (A subarachnoid hemorrhage, a type of bleeding stroke, occurs when blood seeps into the subarachnoid space between the brain and the skull.)ĭilantin has traditionally been the standard of care in preventing seizures, which afflict 25 to 30 percent of patients who have suffered a traumatic brain injury or subarachnoid hemorrhage.
"We continue to make incremental, meaningful strides in the care of patients who are hospitalized in the NSICU following subarachnoid hemorrhage or traumatic brain injury," Shutter says. The published article was written by co-investigator Jerzy Szaflarski, MD, PhD, associate professor of neurology. The study was led by Lori Shutter, MD, associate professor of neurosurgery and neurology and director of neurocritical care at UCNI. Seizures are common following severe brain injury, and minimizing or eliminating them is a primary objective of neurocritical care. The study of anti-seizure medications in the neuroscience intensive care unit (NSICU) at UC Health University Hospital is part of a focused, ongoing effort to harness scientific evidence to improve treatments and outcomes for patients. The study will be published in the April 2010 issue of the journal, Neurocritical Care it appeared online on Nov. Patients treated with Keppra also had improved long-term outcomes, the researchers found. This randomized study supports earlier indications that the anti-seizure medication levetiracetam, marketed as Keppra, was as effective at preventing seizures as the traditional medication, phenytoin, marketed as Dilantin, while producing fewer negative side effects.
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