Adjunctive perampanel in refractory epilepsy: Experience at tertiary epilepsy care center in Tours

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of PER as add-on treatment in patients with severe refractory epilepsy with a particular focus on patients with learning disability and/or psychiatric comorbidity.

We pooled retrospective data from adult patients with refractory epilepsy prescribed perampanel from a tertiary center in France between 1st May 2014 and 3rd June 2015. Data collection was done on February 2016.

One hundred and one patients were included (mean age: 41.2years, 37.6% with learning disability and 49.5% with psychiatric comorbidity). Mean retention was 8.1months (range: 14days to 17months). On final evaluation, a >50% reduction in seizure frequency was reached in 41.6% of patients, and 7 patients (6.9%) became seizure-free. Sixty-three patients (62.4%) experienced adverse effects. The most common adverse effects were irritability, asthenia, aggression, and sedation. Efficacy, retention of treatment, and safety were equally similar in patients with learning disability or psychiatric comorbidity as for those without. The only significant difference was in percentage of seizure-free patients: 11.1% in the group without learning disability compared with 0% in the group with (p=0.043).

Adjunctive PER can achieve clinically meaningful improvement, or even seizure freedom, in more than one-third of patients suffering from severe refractory epilepsies. It seems similarly safe and effective in the subgroup of these patients with learning disability or with psychiatric comorbidity. However, the rate of psychiatric side effects is high,; of note, we asked both patient and caregivers at each visit especially focusing on psychiatric side effects. Patients, caregivers, and families should be informed of potential psychiatric/behavioral risks associated with taking perampanel especially during the initial titration period.