Rufinamide in refractory childhood epileptic encephalopathies other than Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

Background: To report on the first multicenter Italian experience with rufinamide asadjunctive drug in children, adolescents and young adults with refractory childhoodonsetepileptic encephalopathies other than Lennox–Gastaut syndrome.Methods: Thirty-eight patients (19 males, 19 females), aged between 4 and 34 (mean13.7 ± 8.3, median 12.5), all affected by different types of childhood-onset refractoryepileptic encephalopathies other than Lennox–Gastaut syndrome, were treated withrufinamide as adjunctive drug for a mean period of 11.4 months (range 3–26 months).Results: Fifteen of 38 patients (39.5%) had a ‡50% seizure reduction in countableseizures. Complete seizure freedom was achieved in one of these patients (2.6%).Three patients (7.9%) had a 25–49% seizure reduction, whilst seizure frequencyremained unchanged in 15 (39.5%) and increased in five patients (13.1%). Elevenpatients (28.9%) reported adverse side effects. Vomiting was reported in five patients(13.1%); drowsiness, decreased appetite and irritability with migraine manifested inother four patients. They were transient and mild in all cases.Conclusion: Rufinamide may be an effective and well-tolerated adjunctive drug forthe treatment of refractory childhood-onset epileptic encephalopathies other thanLennox–Gastaut syndrome. Rufinamide was most effective in patients with dropattacksand (bi)frontal spike–wave discharges.