Trevor Resnick, MD

“The biggest change in pediatric epilepsy has been the evolution of genetic mutations. It’s really understanding the genetic mutations and types of epilepsy.”

Patients with epilepsy are often refractory to the available antiepileptic medications, making them an incredibly difficult population to treat. Adding in that a large number of these patients are pediatric patients only clouds the situation. 

To try to solve this, a blend of technology, genetics, and medicine has begun to occur, with the future of treatment relying on a combination of the 3 to really improve outcomes for these patients. For Trevor Resnick, MD, the field’s gains in increasing the understanding of the genetic variations between types of epilepsies has primed the future for this combination approach.

To discuss this further, as well as to provide some insight into the clinical trials and studies in these areas that he’s been keeping an eye on and what they mean for the field, the pediatric epileptologist at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital spoke with 

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The pediatric epileptologist at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital spoke about the future of epilepsy and shared which studies of the condition that he’s been keeping an eye on.

Trevor Resnick, MD: Treating Epilepsy By Blending Technology, Genetics, and Pharmacologics

"Thankfully those patients who had been seizure free during the study sustained their seizure freedom during the open label extension study, which further supports the use of Fycompa in patients with secondarily generalized seizures."

At the American Epilepsy Society’s annual meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, Trevor Resnick, MD, pediatric epileptologist at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, spoke with 

about the encouraging results from the long-term seizure freedom data on perampanel (Fycompa) that demonstrated its clinical impact for patients with secondarily generalized seizures.

The initial study, looking at the effectiveness of perampanel for secondary generalized seizures demonstrated a gratifying response in terms of seizure control, according to Resnick. The data showed that 53% of study participants experienced convulsive seizure freedom at 2 years and about 35% at 3 years, but Resnick explained that the major question was the sustainability of seizure freedom.

To address this, a post-hoc analysis was conducted to study the group of patients who were seizure free during the previous phase 3 study. The results of the study found that patients who were previously seizure free sustained their seizure freedom during the open-label extension study, which further supports the use of perampanel in patients with secondarily generalized seizures.

Resnick concludes that for both primary generalized seizures and secondarily generalized seizures, perampanel has an important clinical impact because there aren’t as many antiepileptic drugs available for generalized seizures, and this treatment, FDA approved as a monotherapy and for pediatric use, allows for an additional option for many patients.

The pediatric epileptologist at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital spoke about the long-term seizure freedom data that showed that perampanel was associated with a sustained or increased improvement in seizure control.

Author | Trevor Resnick, MD

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Trevor Resnick, MD: Treating Epilepsy By Blending Technology, Genetics, and Pharmacologics

Trevor Resnick, MD, on Perampanel for Secondarily Generalized Seizures