Lennox-Gastaut syndrome: New treatments and treatments under investigation

Abstract

There are currently five compounds (clobazam, felbamate, lamotrigine, topiramate, rufinamide) available for prescription with a demonstrated efficacy on drop seizures for Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS). There are also currently new and under-investigation compounds. This paper gives an overview on these novel developments for LGS based on the lecture given at the French Chapter meeting of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) held in Paris in October 2019. Five compounds were discussed. Epidiolex (cannabidiol) has been approved recently based on positive randomized control trials in LGS patients. Four drugs are under investigation according to a search on the 'clinicaltrials.gov' database. Perampanel and fenfluramine are both being studied in ongoing phase 3 studies. Two compounds are in an earlier stage of development with ongoing phase 1 and 2 studies: carisbamate and OV953. We summarized the publicly available data. Based on these drug development programs, we can expect that new compounds will become available for LGS in the next years, possibly resulting in new treatment paradigms.

Keywords: Cannabidiol; Carisbamate; Fenfluramine; Lennox-Gastaut syndrome; Perampanel.