Oral Perampanel Well Tolerated in Pediatric Epilepsy

THURSDAY, March 17, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Daily oral perampanel is generally well tolerated, with favorable retention rates among patients with epilepsy aged 1 to younger than 18 years, according to a study recently published in the Journal of Child Neurology.

Eric Segal, M.D., from the Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey, and colleagues reported an interim analysis of preadolescent and adolescent patients (aged 1 to younger than 12 years and aged 12 to younger than 18 years, respectively) from a retrospective phase 4 study. Data were obtained from medical records of 151 preadolescent and 183 adolescent patients with epilepsy initiating perampanel after Jan. 1, 2014.

The researchers found that following 24 months of perampanel, retention rates were 42.5 and 55.7 percent for the preadolescent and adolescent subgroups, respectively. Treatment-emergent adverse events occurred in 35.1 percent of preadolescent participants, with aggression, irritability, and somnolence the most common; treatment-emergent adverse events occurred in 42.6 percent of adolescent patients, with somnolence, aggression, and dizziness the most common.

"Our research shows that daily oral doses of perampanel are well tolerated and have favorable retention rates for pediatric patients," Segal said in a statement. "These findings provide real-world insight into the effectiveness and safety of perampanel therapy and can inform shared decision-making discussions between pediatric epileptologists, patients, and parents."

Several authors disclosed financial ties to pharmaceutical companies, including Eisai, which manufactures perampanel and funded the study.

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