Flunarizine as add-on therapy in epilepsy. Crossover study vs placebo

Abstract

The anticonvulsive effect of flunarizine was studied in a multicenter trial, by means of a randomized, double-blind, single crossover design. The subjects who entered the study were 51 males and 39 females, aged 15 to 73 years. They were epileptic patients who suffered from at least two generalized seizures per month or more than 4 partial seizures per month. The patients were already being treated with major antiepileptic drugs. Flunarizine was administered in a single evening dose of 10 mg/die in patients who weighed less than 70 kg and of 15 mg/die in patients who weighed more 70 kg. Our results show that flunarizine, given as add-on therapy, produced a slight but significant decrease in the number of monthly seizures at the end of a 3-month period, while placebo did not significantly change the seizures frequency.