WebMD Medical News Laura J. Martin, MD May 9, 2012 -- Half of
all epilepsy patients who are initially started on one anti-
seizure drug remain seizure-free for at least a year, a new
study confirms. Among patients followed for as long as 26 years,
initial response to drug treatments strongly predicted future
seizure control. Yet less than 1% of patients who failed to
respond to three anti-seizure drug regimens achieved adequate
seizure control on subsequent drug treatments even though some
were treated with as many as nine different drugs or drug
combinations. The findings make it clear that epilepsy patients
who are candidates for surgery or other non-drug treatments
should be considered for these procedures earlier rather than
later, says neurologist Patricia E. Penovich, MD, of the
University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Epilepsy Group in St.
Paul. "These patients don't have to wait until they have failed
five or six different drug regimens," she tells WebMD. "If their
seizures are not controlled by the f