A double blind study of carbamazepine and diphenylhydantoin in temporal lobe epilepsy

In a double 0lind study no difference was found between carbamazepine and diphenylhydantoin with regard to efficacy in preventing temporal lobe seizures, i.e. partial seizures with complex symptomatology, when the drugs were given without other medication for periods of 16 weeks, and when the serum concentrations were within selected therapeutic levels corresponding to usual therapeutic dosage. Some patients, however, had considerably fewer seizures on carbamazepine, some on diphenylhydantoin. It therefore seems advisable to try both drugs separately, before using a combined medication.