Table 1.
Baseline characteristics
| Valproate (n=260) | Levetiracetam (n=260) | Total (n=520) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, years | |||
| Median (IQR) | 13·6 (8·8–19·7) | 14·1 (9·1–19·8) | 13·9 (8·9–19·7) |
| Range | 5·0–94·4 | 5·0–83·9 | 5·0–94·4 |
| Age group, years | |||
| 5–7 | 52 (20%) | 48 (18%) | 100 (19%) |
| 8–11 | 54 (21%) | 56 (22%) | 110 (21%) |
| 12–15 | 54 (21%) | 48 (18%) | 102 (20%) |
| 16–29 | 70 (27%) | 81 (31%) | 151 (29%) |
| ≥30 | 30 (12%) | 27 (10%) | 57 (11%) |
| Gender | |||
| Male | 167 (64%) | 170 (65%) | 337 (65%) |
| Female | 93 (36%) | 90 (35%) | 183 (35%) |
| Previous or current neurological disorder | |||
| Stroke or cerebrovascular | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cerebral haemorrhage | 0 | 2 (1%) | 2 (<1%) |
| Intracranial surgery | 0 | 2 (1%) | 2 (<1%) |
| Head injury* | 1 (<1%) | 1 (<1%) | 2 (<1%) |
| Meningitis or encephalitis | 4 (2%) | 0 | 4 (1%) |
| Cortical dysplasia or developmental anomaly | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 11 (4%) | 13 (5%) | 24 (5%) |
| History | |||
| Learning disability | 22 (8%) | 29 (11%) | 51 (10%) |
| Febrile convulsions | 21 (8%) | 23 (9%) | 44 (8%) |
| Any other acute symptomatic seizures | 4 (2%) | 10 (4%) | 14 (3%) |
| Family history in primary relatives | 49 (19%) | 50 (19%) | 99 (19%) |
| Neurological deficit | 6 (2%) | 10 (4%) | 16 (3%) |
| Epilepsy type | |||
| Generalised epilepsy | 201 (77%) | 196 (75%) | 397 (76%) |
| Unclassified epilepsy | 59 (23%) | 64 (25%) | 123 (24%) |
| Epilepsy syndrome (generalised epilepsy only)† | |||
| Childhood absence | 52 (26%) | 52 (27%) | 104 (26%) |
| Juvenile absence | 22 (11%) | 14 (7%) | 36 (9%) |
| Juvenile myoclonic | 24 (12%) | 27 (14%) | 51 (13%) |
| Epilepsy with tonic-clonic seizures on awakening | 11 (5%) | 12 (6%) | 23 (6%) |
| Other idiopathic generalised epilepsy not specified‡ | 90 (45%) | 90 (46%) | 180 (45%) |
| Other epilepsy syndrome | 10 (5%) | 7 (4%) | 17 (4%) |
| Total number of seizures reported | |||
| Median | 10 (3–99+) | 10 (3–99+) | 10 (3–99+) |
| Missing | 1 | 5 | 6 |
| Days since most recent seizure | |||
| Median | 4 (0–26) | 4 (0–25) | 4 (0–26) |
| Range | 0–223 | 0–211 | 0–223 |
| Missing | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Age at first seizure, years | |||
| Median | 12 (7·2–18) | 13 (8·3–18) | 13 (7·8–18) |
| Range | 0·5–93 | 0·2–80 | 0·2–93 |
| Missing | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| Interval between first and most recent seizure, days | |||
| Median | 203 (98–665) | 250 (110–603) | 228 (100–648) |
| Range | 0–16 136 | 0–19 662 | 0–19 662 |
| Missing | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| EEG | |||
| EEG not done | 20 (8%) | 24 (9%) | 44 (8%) |
| EEG normal | 58 (22%) | 51 (20%) | 109 (21%) |
| Non-specific abnormality | 11 (4%) | 9 (3%) | 20 (4%) |
| Generalised abnormality (slow wave activity with spiking) | 138 (53%) | 133 (51%) | 271 (52%) |
| Generalised abnormality (slow wave activity without spiking) | 8 (3%) | 7 (3%) | 15 (3%) |
| Focal abnormality (paroxysmal slow activity with spiking) | 10 (4%) | 8 (3%) | 18 (3%) |
| Focal abnormality (paroxysmal slow activity without spiking) | 2 (1%) | 7 (3%) | 9 (2%) |
| Other | 13 (5%) | 21 (8%) | 34 (7%) |
Data are n (%) or median (IQR), unless otherwise stated. EEG=electroencephalogram.
*
Post-traumatic amnesia lasting over 24 h or compound depressed fracture.
†
More than one category could be selected.
‡
150 (83%) of 180 patients in this group reported tonic-clonic seizures.