From: Valproic acid as adjuvant treatment for convulsive status epilepticus: a randomised clinical trial
Characteristics | n | Placebo (n = 118) | n | Valproic acid (n = 126) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Age, median (IQR) year | 118 | 56.2 (44.7–68.1) | 126 | 58.5 (44.8–68.6) |
> 65 year—no. (%) | 118 | 41 (35) | 126 | 44 (35) |
Male sex—no. (%) | 118 | 76 (64) | 126 | 84 (67) |
Medical history | ||||
History of epilepsy—no. (%) | 117 | 57 (49) | 123 | 60 (49) |
Pre-existing anti-epileptic treatment—no. (%) | 117 | 50 (43) | 123 | 59 (48) |
Other pre-existing neurological disease—no. (%) | 117 | 64 (55) | 123 | 71 (58) |
Characteristics of the status epilepticus at randomisation | ||||
Acute brain injury—no. (%) | 118 | 17 (14) | 126 | 28 (22) |
Seizure type—no. (%) | 115 | 123 | ||
Primary generalised status epilepticus | 97 (84) | 89 (72) | ||
Secondary generalised status epilepticus | 18 (16) | 34 (28) | ||
Focal neurological signs—no. (%) | 116 | 17 (15) | 123 | 28 (23) |
Time from seizure onset to ICU admission—median (IQR) h | 109 | 2.5 (1.9–3.5) | 116 | 2.7 (2.0–3.9) |
First-line anti-epileptic drug—no. (%) | ||||
Benzodiazepine§ | 117 | 109 (93) | 124 | 115 (93) |
Second-line anti-epileptic drugs– no. (%) | 117 | 67 (57) | 124 | 74 (60) |
Phenobarbital | 117 | 13 (11) | 124 | 28 (23) |
Levetiracetam | 117 | 3 (3) | 124 | 3 (2) |
Fosphenytoin/phenytoin | 117 | 52 (44) | 124 | 45 (36) |
Sedation—no. (%) | 117 | 40 (34) | 124 | 44 (35) |
Midazolam | 117 | 30 (26) | 124 | 35 (28) |
Propofol | 117 | 4 (3) | 124 | 3 (2) |
Sodium thiopental | 117 | 13 (11) | 124 | 14 (11) |
Interruption of seizure—no. (%) | 117 | 102 (87) | 123 | 107 (87) |
Arousal before randomisation—no. (%) | 117 | 10 (9) | 124 | 13 (10) |
Refractory status epilepticus—no. (%) | 117 | 11 (9) | 124 | 11 (9) |
Mechanical ventilation—no. (%) | 116 | 83 (72) | 124 | 82 (66) |
Glasgow coma scale—median (IQR) | 112 | 4.0 (3.0–6.2) | 117 | 3.0 (3.0–7.0) |
SAPSII—median (IQR) | 118 | 52 (42–61) | 126 | 48 (38–59) |
SOFA—median (IQR) | 105 | 6.0 (5.0–8.0) | 102 | 6.0 (4.0–7.0) |
Final diagnosis—no. (%)* | 118 | 126 | ||
Acute symptomatic | 41 (35) | 46 (37) | ||
Remote symptomatic | 31 (26) | 35 (28) | ||
Progressive symptomatic | 29 (25) | 29 (23) | ||
Non-epileptic spell | 2 (2) | 0 (0) | ||
Other | 2 (2) | 2 (2) | ||
Unknown | 13 (11) | 14 (11) |