Prophylactic antibiotics induce early postcraniotomy seizures in neurosurgery patients: A case series

Antibiotics can cause central nervous system disturbances, manifesting as dizziness, confusion, headache, and seizures. Seizures due to antibiotic administration are related to increased excitatory neurotransmission because antibiotics act as competitive antagonists of the γ-aminobutyric acid type A receptor.

All 5 patients, comprising 4 females and one male and aged 45 to 72 years, underwent open craniotomy with additional surgical maneuvers according to their specific disease. All patients presented American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status grades 1 to 2. There were no specific underlying diseases, except hepatitis C and hypertension. However, seizures developed sequentially in the 5 patients after neurosurgery.

Early postcraniotomy seizures (PCS) developed in the patients after neurosurgery. Prophylactic antibiotics were administered in all cases to prevent infection due to open craniotomy. This included the administration of 10 g and 2 g of an antibiotic (cefotiam HCL; Jetiam Intravenous Injection 1g®) an hour before the surgery in the ward and half an hour before the surgery in the operating room, respectively. After surgery, cefotiam HCL 2 g was administered in all patients on the day of surgery. Five patients had myoclonic seizure or generalized tonic-clonic seizure several times at emergence or in the intensive care unit.

Early PCS occurred in every patient when an overdose of the prophylactic antibiotic was administered. This report showed that the preoperative prophylactic antibiotic cefotiam administered in double doses evoked early PCS within a few hours of drug administration. Furthermore, such experiences caution that preoperative intravenous cephalosporins, including cefotiam, should be administered carefully in open craniotomy.