Author Description

Hardbound. Until this century, there was no scientific method for developing and testing agents for the treatment of epilepsy. Physicians would often, from analogy to other conditions, try remedies which appeared to affect systems thought to be important in the onset of seizures. The many developments and treatment concepts in epilepsy research in the last half-century have culminated in the short reign of popularity of monotherapy. Monotherapy is now being challenged by rational polypharmacy, based on the theory that two or more antiepileptic agents with different mechanisms of action may be more beneficial. This volume addresses areas in which monotherapy may be made more rational, and proposes that rational polypharmacy is the natural extension of rational monotherapy. Numerous issues are explored which need further delineation with a goal of a comprehensive antiepileptic drug management program to be developed for each patient.