Intravenous Levetiracetam for Treatment of Seizures in Term and Preterm Neonates

CONTEXT: Seizures are the most frequent neurological disturbance in the neonatal period, and there are no evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of neonatal seizures. Here we report a study on the use of levetiracetam as second-line therapy in the treatment of seizures in term and preterm neonates. AIM: The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of levetiracetam for seizures of term and preterm neonates. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: We retrospectively analyzed data of the patients who had seizures and who were treated with levetiracetam as an add-on therapy to phenobarbital during the neonatal period. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software, version 15.0 (SPSS, Chicago, Illinois), was used for statistical analysis. Continuous variables were expressed as mean values and standard deviations. RESULTS: Thirty-six patients (8 term and 28 preterm) received levetiracetam. Mean dose of levetiracetam was 31.67 ± 14.83mg/kg/day. Twenty-five of the patients (69.4%) were seizure free with levetiracetam treatment. Electroencephalography recordings improved in 28 (77.8%) of the patients after levetiracetam. No severe adverse effects were observed. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that levetiracetam may be a safe and effective treatment for neonatal seizures, which are unresponsive to phenobarbital.