Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 17
To treat or not to treat drug-refractory epilepsy by the ketogenic diet? That is the question
Abstract
Epilepsy is a serious neurologic disorder worldwide which affects about 1% of the population (ca. 50 million people), the highest prevalence occurring in both children and elderly. Apart from idiopathic forms, etiology of the disease involves multiple brain risk factors – the most frequent being cerebrovascular diseases, tumours and traumatic injuries. Several treatment options exist, including, for instance, pharmacotherapy, vagal nerve stimulation or epilepsy surgery. In spite ...
Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 16
The roles of vitamin B12 and vitamin D in children with intractable epilepsy
Abstract: Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder. Antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) can cause vitamin B12 or D deficiency in children with intractable epilepsy. In this study, we measured salivary superoxide dismutase (SOD) and metalloproteinsases (MMP) levels in the patients with vitamin B12 and vitamin D treatment. Cytokines and chemokines were measured using ELISA. The mean salivary value of SOD activity in the control group was 1.75 ± 0.21 U/ml. In the treatment group, the value was 1.33 ± 0.18 U/ml. The ...
Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 15
The role of glial cells in epilepsy
BACKGROUND Brain research in the last century was mainly directed at neurons, with the role of glia assumed to be limited to repair, supplying nutrients and above all simply filling the space between neurons. In recent years, the importance of glial cells for normal brain function has been recognised. This article summarises knowledge of glial cells relevant to epilepsy.
METHOD The article is based on a literature search in PubMed as well as the authors’ clinical and research experience.
RESULTS Astrocytes are the largest subgroup of glial ...
Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 14
The Ketogenic and Atkins Diets Effect on Intractable Epilepsy: A Comparison
Abstract
Objective
Intractable epilepsy is a major difficulty in child neurology, because the numbers of drugs that are available for treatment are limited and new treatments such as diets must be tried. Now there are some diets available for treating patients with intractable epilepsy. The oldest diet is the classic ketogenic diet and one of the newest diets is the modified Atkins diet. Patients have a harder time accepting the classic ketogenic diet than the Atkins diet, which is easier to accept becaus...
Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 13
Risk factors of vitamin D deficiency in children with epilepsy taking anticonvulsants at initial and during follow-up
Purpose: Vitamin D status was evaluated in children with epilepsy taking anticonvulsants to determine the prevalence and risk factors of vitamin D deficiency.
Methods: This study was designed as both a cross-sectional and a retrospective cohort study. A sum of 198 children who were diagnosed with epilepsy at the Department of Pediatrics in Dankook University Hospital was included. Their serum vitamin D levels were reviewed based on clinical information, and analyzed ...
Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 12
Neurobiochemical mechanisms of a ketogenic diet in refractory epilepsy
Abstract
A ketogenic diet is an important therapy used in the control of drug-refractory seizures. Many studies have shown that children and adolescents following ketogenic diets exhibit an over 50% reduction in seizure frequency, which is considered to be clinically relevant. These benefits are based on a diet containing high fat (approximately 90% fat) for 24 months. This dietary model was proposed in the 1920s and has produced variable clinical responses. Previous studies have shown that the mechanisms ...
Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 11
Low Vitamin D Levels Are Common in Patients with Epilepsy
SUMMARY
Purpose—Vitamin D is important for bone health, and vitamin D deficiency may contribute to other disorders (e.g., autoimmune, infections, cancer, degenerative, diabetic, and vascular). Enzyme-inducing antiepileptic drugs have been particularly implicated for osteoporosis risk given their effects on vitamin D. We examined the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in adult epilepsy patients.
Methods—We conducted an observational study of consecutive epilepsy patients treated by two clinicians at the Emory University ...
Nutrição e Epilepsia – Artigo 10
Long-term impact of the ketogenic diet on growth and resting energy expenditure in children with intractable epilepsy
Abstract
AIM—The long-term effects of the ketogenic diet, a high fat diet for treating intractable epilepsy, on resting energy expenditure (REE) are unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of 15 months of ketogenic diet treatment on growth and REE in children with intractable epilepsy.
METHOD—Growth, body composition and REE were assessed at baseline, 3 and 15 months in 24 children (14 males, 10 females; mean age 5y 6mo (SD 26mo), range 7mo–6y ...
