Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with epilepsy (n = 64) and healthy controls (n = 64).
| Characteristics | Patients (n = 64) | Controls (n = 64) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total (n = 64) | Male (n = 31) | Female (n = 33) | Total (n = 64) | Male (n = 31) | Female (n = 33) | |
| Sex (%) | 100 | 48 | 52 | 100 | 48 | 52 |
| Age in years, mean ± SD (range) | 32.0 ± 13.10 (18–73) |
32.48 ± 14.20 (18–72) |
31.6 ± 12.3 (18–73) |
32.0 ± 13.0 (18–73) |
32.5 ± 14.30 (73–18) |
31.4 ± 11.9 (19–72) |
| Not seizure-free patients * | 42 | 19 | 23 | NA | NA | NA |
| Seizure-free patients * | 22 | 12 | 10 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG monotherapy group | Patients (n = 18) | Controls (n = 18) | ||||
| Total (n = 18) | Male (n = 7) | Female (n = 11) | Total (n = 18) | Male (n = 7) | Female (n = 11) | |
| Sex (%) | 100 | 39 | 61 | 100 | 39 | 61 |
| Age in years, mean ± SD (range) | 34.2 ± 14.9 (18–72) |
39.6 ± 27.7 (18–72) |
30.8 ± 9.39 (19–49) |
34.3 ± 15.3 (18–73) |
40.0 ± 21.4 (18–73) |
30.6 ± 9.17 (19–47) |
| Not seizure-free patients * | 13 | 5 | 8 | NA | NA | NA |
| Seizure-free patients * | 5 | 2 | 3 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG dose in mg; mean ± SD | 225.0 ± 113.0 | 236.0 ± 103.0 | 218.0 ± 123.0 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG PC, n = (subtherapeutic/therapeutic/supratherapeutic) | (7/11/0) | (3/8/0) | (4/3/0) | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG PC μg mL−1; mean ± SD | 4.6 ± 3.6 | 2.8 ± 1.6 | 5.74 ± 4.1 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG adjusted PC (µg mL−1 dose Kg−1) | 1.5 ± 1.5 | 0.9 ± 0.3 | 2.0 ± 1.8 | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA monotherapy group | Patients (n = 19) | Controls (n = 18) | ||||
| Total (n = 19) | Male (n = 9) | Female (n = 10) | Total (n = 19) | Male (n = 9) | Female (n = 10) | |
| Sex (%) | 100 | 57 | 43 | 100 | 57 | 43 |
| Age in years, mean ± SD (range) | 32.8 ± 12.3 (20–67) |
34.4 ± 14.8 (21–67) |
31.0 ± 9.42 (20–49) |
32.7 ± 12.0 (21–66) |
34.2 ± 14.5 (21–66) |
31.0 ± 9.19 (21–49) |
| Not seizure-free patients * (n = 9) | 9 | 4 | 5 | NA | NA | NA |
| Seizure-free patients * (n = 10) | 10 | 5 | 5 | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA dose in mg; mean ± SD ⤉ | 932.0 ± 437.0 | 1100.0 ± 477.0 | 844.0 ± 397.0 | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA PC, n = (subtherapeutic/therapeutic/supratherapeutic) ⤉ | (0/17/0) | (0/9/0) | (0/8/0) | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA PC, μg mL−1; mean ± SD ⤉ | 68.1 ± 20.6 | 60.3 ± 16.7 | 76.9 ± 22.0 | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA adjusted PC (µg mL−1 dose Kg−1) ⤉ | 4.4 ± 1.3 | 4.0 ± 1.2 | 5.0 ± 1.2 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG + VPA combined therapy group | Patients (n = 27) | Controls (n = 27) | ||||
| Total (n = 27) | Male (n = 14) | Female (n = 13) | Total (n = 27) | Male (n = 14) | Female (n = 13) | |
| Sex (%) | 100 | 52 | 48 | 100 | 52 | 48 |
| Age in years, mean ± SD (range) | 30.1 ± 12.6 (18–73) |
27.6 ± 7.64 (19–48) |
32.8 ± 16.4 (18–73) |
29.9 ± 12.3 (18–72) |
27.6 ± 7.44 (18–47) |
32.4 ± 15.9 (19–72) |
| Not seizure-free patients * | 20 | 9 | 11 | NA | NA | NA |
| Seizure-free patients * | 7 | 5 | 2 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG dose in mg; mean ± SD | 189.0 ± 84.7 | 211.0 ± 92.4 | 165.0 ± 71.8 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG PC, n = (subtherapeutic/therapeutic/supratherapeutic) | (1/21/5) | (1/10/3) | (0/11/2) | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG PC, μg mL−1; mean ± SD | 9.8 ± 4.3 | 9.8 ± 4.6 | 9.7 ± 4.0 | NA | NA | NA |
| LTG adjusted PC (µg mL−1 dose Kg−1) | 3.7 ± 1.8 | 3.2 ± 0.8 | 4.1 ± 2.4 | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA dose in mg; mean ± SD | 1039.0 ± 496.0 | 1189.0 ± 476.0 | 950 ± 122.0 | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA PC, n = (subtherapeutic/therapeutic/supratherapeutic) § | (0/15/1) | (0/6/0) | (0/9/1) | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA PC, μg mL−1; mean ± SD § | 74.8 ± 25.5 | 76.8 ± 15.9 | 80.0 ± 33.9 | NA | NA | NA |
| VPA adjusted PC (µg mL−1 dose Kg−1) § | 2.7 ± 1.6 | 1.1 ± 1.5 | 2.1 ± 2.0 | NA | NA | NA |
* Seizure-free patients: according to the operational definition of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), this is when patients have gone without a seizure for at least 3 times the duration of their longest pre-intervention inter-seizure interval in the preceding 12 months (www.ilae.org (accessed on 12 December 2024)). PC: plasma concentration; subtherapeutic PC of LTG (<3 µg mL−1); therapeutic PC of LTG (3–15 µg mL−1); supratherapeutic PC of LTG (>15 µg mL−1); subtherapeutic PC of VPA (<8.9 µg mL−1); therapeutic PC of VPA (8.9–115 µg mL−1); supratherapeutic PC of VPA (>115 µg mL−1); ⤉ data from 17 patients; § data from 16 patients; NA: not applicable.