Drug treatment of epilepsy

Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder. As many as 1 in 20 of the general population have a fit at some time in their lives, and at any one time around 200,000 people in the UK are taking antiepileptic drugs. On treatment at least two-thirds of patients are likely to be free of attacks and eventually almost two-thirds are likely to be fit-free on no medication. In this article we review the drugs used to control epilepsy and consider how and when they can be withdrawn.