Medication-Resistant Epilepsy: Diagnosis and Treatment

Description

Fifty million people worldwide have epilepsy and yet up to 35% of patients experience seizures that are resistant to anti-epileptic drugs. Patients with medication-resistant epilepsy have increased risks of premature death, psychosocial dysfunction and a reduced quality of life. This key resource delivers guidance for all clinicians involved in caring for patients with medication-resistant epilepsy in order to reduce these risks. Covering the epidemiology, biology, causes and potential treatments for medication-resistant epilepsy, this definitive and focused text reviews the clinical care needs of patients. Guidance is practical and includes treatment for specialized groups including pediatric patients and those with psychiatric comorbidities. Several promising non-pharmacologic interventions available for patients, such as surgery, neuromodulation diet therapy and botanical treatment are explored in detail. Leading international figures from a range of disciplines bring their expertise together holistically in this essential manual.

John Stern is a Professor and Director of the Epilepsy Clinical Program in the Department of Neurology at the Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles. Raman Sankar is Chief of Pediatric Neurology and Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Neurology and Paediatrics at the Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles. Michael Sperling is the Director of Jefferson Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, Philadelphia, and Professor of Neurology at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia.

'This is a wonderful textbook that systematically covers a complex and challenging subset of epilepsy patients. The novelty lies in the fact that there are few textbooks that offer such a comprehensive review - medication resistant epilepsy is often relegated to a single chapter in other comparable textbooks in epilepsy. The book excels in introducing the topic of medication resistant epilepsy (including a functional definition) and offering a detailed review of treatments available.' Mahnoor Rehman, Doody's Book Review Service