Expert consensus opinion in treatment of epilepsy

Objective To prepare expert consensus opinion in treatment of epilepsy in China.Methods To sent an anonymous questionnaire on the treatment of adolescent and adult epilepsy syndromes to a group of hospital neurologists in the field of epilepsy. The questions were formatted to simulate real-world clinical situations in the treatment of symptomatic localization related epilepsy (SLRE), idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE), and treatment in special patient populations and patients with comorbidity. The experts were asked to rate treatment options based on a modified RAND 9-point scale (with 9 most appropriate and 1 least appropriate). Statistical analysis of data was performed as defined by the expert consensus method. The results were used to develop user-friendly recommendations concerning overall treatment strategies and choice of specific medications. Results Of the 50 experts to whom the survey was sent, 49 (98%) responded. Of the respondents, 11 (22.4%) were female and 38 (77.6%) male. Their mean age was 53.9 years, with a mean of 17.9 years in practice. The median number of patients seen per month was 100 ( range, 20 to 800 ). For initial monotherapy of IGE ( generalized tonic-clonic ( GTC ),absence, and myoclonic seizures), valproate was rated as treatment of choice. Treatment options were rated for 3 types of SLRE: simple partial seizures ( SPS), complex partial seizures ( CPS ) , and secondarily generalized tonic-clonic seizures (SGTC). In SLRE-SPS and SLRE-CPS, carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine were treatments of choice, with lamotrigine, topiramate and levetiracetam as second line agents. In SLRESGTC, carbamazepine, lamotrigine and oxcarbazepine were treatments of choice, while lamotrigine,topiramate, levetiracetam and valproate were also usually appropriate. Valproate was selected as treatment of choice when combined with other AEDs in IGE. For SLRE, combination/add-on therapy of carbamazepine ( oxcarbazcpine ) + topiramate, carbamazepine ( oxcarbazepine ) + levetiracetam, carbamazepine (oxcarbazepine) +valproate, valproate + lamotrigine were considered as treatment of choice. For women who are pregnant or trying to conceive, lamotrigine was treatment of choice for both idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE) and symptomatic localization related epilepsy (SLRE). For patients with school-age,lamotrigine was treatment of choice for IGE, with oxcarbazepine and lamotrigine for SLRE. In people with both epilepsy syndromes who have depression, valproate and lamotrigine were treatment of choice for IGE; in SIRE, lamotrigine, oxcarbazepine and carbamazepine were treatment of choice. In persons with epilepsy and hepatitis B, whether liver function was normal or not, topiramate and levetiracetam were treatment of choice for IGE; in SLRE with normal liver function, oxcarbazepine was treatment of choice, while topiramate and levetiracetam were selected for SLRE with liver function impairment. Valproate and levetiracetam were treatment of choice for seizures in the emergency department. Conclusions The expert consensus method concisely summarizes expert opinion, and this opinion may be helpful in situations in which the medical literature is scant or lacking. Key words: Epilepsy;  Drug therapy;  Questionnaires