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British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Ed.) logoLink to British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Ed.)
. 1985 Nov 9;291(6505):1328–1329. doi: 10.1136/bmj.291.6505.1328

Is there a place for placebo controlled trials of antiepileptic drugs?

S D Shorvon, M L Espir, T J Steiner, C I Dellaportas, F C Rose
PMCID: PMC1417400  PMID: 3933653

Abstract

In many patients who develop epilepsy the disease is short lived and the overall number of seizures small. The role of anticonvulsant drugs in such patients is uncertain. If treatment is merely suppressive and the disease self limiting then treatment may not be necessary in some patients. If, on the other hand, early treatment prevents the subsequent evolution to chronic epilepsy then it is imperative. To resolve this issue it is essential to undertake placebo controlled trials, in which a group of patients with newly diagnosed epilepsy is given active treatment and compared with a similar group given placebo alone.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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