Ketogenic diet therapy in children with epilepsy caused by SLC2A1 mutations: a single-center single-arm retrospective study

BackgroundThis retrospective study assessed the efficacy and safety of ketogenic diet therapies in children with epilepsy caused by SLC2A1 genetic mutations and glucose transporter type 1 deficiency syndrome.MethodsPediatric patients with epilepsy symptoms admitted to our medical center between January 2017 and October 2021 were included if they presented with an SLC2A1 genetic mutation on whole-exome sequencing. We analyzed the patients’ convulsions and treatment with antiepileptic drugs. The patients were followed up at different time periods after ketogenic diet therapies. ResultsSix patients with SLC2A1 mutations were included in this study. The patients had seizures of different types and frequencies, and they took antiepileptic drugs to relieve their symptoms. They were then treated with a ketogenic diet for at least four months. We analyzed epilepsy control rates at 1, 2, 3, 6, and 12 months after ketogenic diet treatment. All patients were seizure-free within a month of receiving the diet therapy. All patients were followed up for six months, three were followed up for 12 months after the treatment, and there was no recurrence of epilepsy during this period. After antiepileptic drug withdrawal, none of the patients experienced seizure relapse when receiving ketogenic diet treatment alone. No severe adverse events occurred during the therapy.ConclusionsKetogenic diet therapy is very effective and safe for the treatment of epilepsy caused by SLC2A1 mutations. Therefore, patients with glucose transporter type 1 deficiency syndrome caused by SLC2A1 mutations should begin ketogenic diet treatment as soon as possible.