TY - CHAP M1 - Book, Section TI - Antiepileptic Drugs: How to Choose A1 - Pellock, John M. A2 - Duchowny, Michael A2 - Cross, J. Helen A2 - Arzimanoglou, Alexis PY - 2017 T2 - Pediatric Epilepsy AB - Following the diagnosis of epilepsy and making the decision to start a treatment, as discussed in the prior chapter, the clinician must choose the most appropriate initial medication. This decision requires knowledge of the clinical pharmacology of medications used for the treatment of epilepsy and an ability to individualize treatment to the child in question.1 The ultimate goal is complete control of seizures without producing adverse effects. Although the perfect drug does not exist, the current therapeutic armamentarium offers a broader range of choices than available ever before with each drug having some advantages and disadvantages. A single drug should be chosen so that the child is treated with monotherapy, which has the likelihood of producing the fewest number of side effects.2,3 The first issue in deciding upon initial therapy depends on seizure type. An appreciation of epilepsy syndrome is also extremely important, as it may select for or against an agent and may exacerbate seizure types, which have not been yet appreciated in the child. SN - PB - McGraw-Hill Education CY - New York, NY Y2 - 2024/10/10 UR - neurology.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1138411988 ER -