[Anticonvulsive prophylaxis after juvenile craniocerebral injuries: a retrospective evaluation]

A check-up of 124 children with medium to severest contusio cerebri showed a posttraumatic late epilepsy rate of 8% at an average control period of 12 years. A third of all children received a long-term anticonvulsive prophylaxis of approximately 4 years, under which 13% showed a manifest late epilepsy, while the rate of the non-protected group was 6% (each 5 patients). Even with a full anticonvulsion therapy it was not possible to avoid further convulsion in any of the children. By these results and new publications, a posttraumatic anticonvulsive prophylaxis is questioned and it is recommended to start an anticonvulsion therapy only if late epilepsy has become definitely manifest.