Anticonvulsants

Anticonvulsant effect is the property of the substances that weaken or strengthen the progress of excitation of inhibitory processes in the CNS, including barbiturates, bromides, tranquilizers, and other various groups.

However, a number of means allocate specific anticonvulsant activity and efficacy in pathological conditions involving convulsive reactions (with intoxication, infectious diseases, CNS trauma, etc.). The special value belongs to anticonvulsants that are effective in epilepsy and used to prevent or treat seizures or their respective equivalents (loss or impairment of consciousness, behavioral and autonomic disorders, etc.) of certain forms of the disease.

Anticonvulsant (antiepileptic) drugs are synthetic compounds of different chemical groups: derivatives of barbituric acid (phenobarbital, benzonal, benzobamil, hexamidine) hydantoin derivatives (phenytoin), oksazolidindiona (Trimethadione), succinimides (ethosuximide, pufemid) derivatives iminostilbena (carbamazepine) etc. More recently benzodiazepine drugs have been developed. They have especially pronounced anticonvulsant effect (clonazepam, etc.). There has been a brand new group of antiepileptic drugs – valproic acid and its salts (or Atsediprol konvuleks, etc.).

Anticonvulsants are the medicines that can prevent or stop attacks or seizures of different origin. Currently, the term anticonvulsants are usually used for drugs used to prevent various forms of epilepsy (antiepileptic drugs).

Convulsions should be immediately eliminated, as they are dangerous to human life. During the seizures energy resources in the body are being depleted and not replenished, especially those in the brain that can lead to irreversible damage to the patient’s health, his/her death or subsequent disability.

Treatment with the anticonvulsant drugs may take many months. So often the various side effects are associated with taking anticonvulsants.

Anticonvulsants (synonym anticonvulsants drugs) are the drugs that can prevent the development of seizures of various etiologies. Strictly speaking, the term anticonvulsants should be marked only the substances used to treat various forms of epilepsy, so it is more correct to call this group of drugs “antiepileptic drugs”.

The use of anticonvulsants for epilepsy in most cases is only one component of the whole complex of therapeutic measures.

Anticonvulsants are used to eliminate seizures of any kind. The cause of the seizures may include: central nervous system diseases (meningitis, encephalitis, epilepsy, kernicterus, head trauma), disorders of metabolic processes in the body (hypocalcemia, hypoglycemia, hyperthermia, hypoxia, etc.), medications in excessive dose (amidopirina, analgesics, morphine, etc.).

Anticonvulsants are divided into two groups:

1. means depressing respiration (sodium hydroxybutyrate, benzodiazepines, lidocaine, fentanyl with droperidolom);
2. means significantly inhibiting respiration (barbiturates, magnesium sulphate, chloral hydrate). As a rule, one should begin with the first group of drugs: if they do not eliminate seizures, one should use the drugs of the second group.

Good anticonvulsant effect arises from a combination of phenobarbital with sibazona. Usually one should begin woth therapy, then the seizures are eliminated quickly, and phenobarbital dose can be reduced by a factor of 2, which reduces the risk of respiratory depression.

Sometimes drugs are administered simultaneously in both groups.