Treatment Optimization of Antiseizure Medications, Holding Higher Standards: William Rosenfeld, MD

WATCH TIME: 2 minutes

"No matter the study we’re doing, patients are on 1, 2, or 3 concomitant antiseizure medications, and it’s often the combination. Learning to lower the concomitant meds is probably just as much of importance as adding. It’s very easy to add on, it’s harder to take away the medications."

In November 2019, the FDA granted approval to cenobamate (Xcopri; SK Life Science) for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in adults. The approval was fueled by clinical trials that evaluated the efficacy and safety of the antiseizure medication (ASM) in more than 1900 patients. Since then, the drug has only furthered its overall profile, capping off with 6 abstracts at this year’s American Epilepsy Society (AES) annual meeting, December 3-7, in Chicago, Illinois.

Among them included the efficacy of cenobamate by focal seizure subtypes, how the drug improves patients who’ve failed previous epilepsy surgery, its use in those who have developmental disability, and how it compared with other ASMs in treating uncontrolled focal seizures. When asked about whether improving treatment optimization remains a priority within the space, William Rosenfeld, MD, expressed that that was the case, and that seizure freedom continues to be the top concern for patients.

Rosenfeld, neurologist, Comprehensive Epilepsy Care Center for Children and Adults, in St. Louis, Missouri, has been a part of the clinical development of cenobamate as an author in pre- and post-approval studies. He sat down with NeurologyLive® at AES to discuss why treatment optimization continues to be of high importance and the challenges associated with lowering concomitant ASMs.

For more coverage of AES 2021, click here.