News

As part of its Valproate Response Project established in 2018, the HSE has prepared a Rapid Assessment report of the number of women and children exposed to sodium valproate (Epilim) in Ireland over the past 40 years.

One out of every four patients that are admitted to hospitals to have their seizures evaluated do not have epilepsy. Oftentimes they will have PNES or psychogenic non-epileptic seizures. This is an extremely difficult to diagnose condition and can be quite debilitating for people living with it.

A Trinity College research group have made a revelation in epilepsy research by becoming the first group to describe a model of mitochondrial epilepsy. This raises the possibility of more effective therapies being developed in the future. The paper which outlines these findings was published in BRAIN, a peer reviewed journal of neurology.

Medtronic plc recently announced both the U.S. launch of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) for medically-refractory epilepsy and the first commercially implanted patient at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga. According to the Epilepsy Foundation, as many as 3.4 million Americans have epilepsy, with one-third estimated to be drug resistant.

Professor Stafford Lightman at the University of Bristol began investigating the links between stress and seizures in 2014. This research is vital as although the association between stress and seizures has been noted it is still not fully understood. Lightman’s team from University of Bristol and the University of Exeter placed their focus on the research of cortisol. This is a hormone that is released by the body in response to stress.

Concerns have been raised in the media in recent weeks regarding possible interruptions to the supply of essential medications in Ireland that might occur in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Currently, about 60% of all medications used in Ireland are imported from or pass through Britain.

A new study carried out by a University of Iowa research team  has used a multidisciplinary strategy that uses a combination of bioinformatics and gene expression profiling to determine a list of close to 90 drugs that are FDA approved and may also be effective as anti-seizure treatment.

A study which focused on patients with intellectual disabilities who reside in care homes found that seizures marked with convulsions that occur at night are more likely to be associated with sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP).

A group of scientists based in the Netherlands have developed a new watch like bracelet that will possibly be saving lives in the future.

This new bracelet, called the Nightwatch was first unveiled in the Neurology journal. It is reported that it has the capability to detect 85% of seizures at night. This is a much higher detection rate than other similar technology.

GPs and pharmacists in the UK are being warned to review all female patient cases that are taking the epilepsy medication sodium valproate. This comes from data showing that there is a wide variation in prescription practices in the UK.