Background. Despite significant advances in epileptology, approximately one-third of epilepsy patients suffer from drug-resistant seizures. Numerous approaches are currently available to treat epilepsy; however, there are still many patients with treatment-resistant epilepsy, in whom surgical treatment is impossible and alternative methods (vagus nerve stimulation and ketogenic diet) are ineffective. Therefore, searching for novel effective antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) is crucial for these patients.

Objective: analysis of own data on the efficacy and tolerability of rufinamide in patients with severe forms of epilepsy and seizures typical of Lennox–Gastaut syndrome (LGS).

Materials and methods. The study included 31 patients aged between 4 and 26 years (mean age 7.5 years) that received rufinamide (inovelon). The study cohort comprised 21 males and 10 females. Fifteen patients were diagnosed with LGS, whereas 16 patients were diagnosed with structural focal epilepsy with a phenocopy of LGS. Five patients had an evolution of West syndrome to LGS. The majority of patients (n = 22) experienced predominantly axial tonic seizures and epileptic spasms that were considered as indications for introduction of rufinamide. All patients underwent electroencephalography, video-electroencephalography monitoring during wakefulness and sleep, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (including high-resolution MRI with special epilepsy protocols when indicated), genetic examination (tandem mass spectrometry, hereditary epilepsy gene panel test and chromosomal microarray analysis) when indicated, and laboratory tests to assess tolerability of antiepileptic drugs.

Results. Good therapeutic effect (more than 50 % reduction in seizure frequency) was achieved in 14 (45.2 %) patients. A less than 50 % reduction in seizure frequency occurred in 5 (16.1 %) patients; in 2 of them seizures became shorter and milder without a significant reduction in their frequency. Rufinamide was ineffective in 9 (29 %) patients. Three (9.7 %) patients experienced aggravation (increased seizure frequency) after the introduction of rufinamide. Thus, treatment with rufinamide was effective in 19 (61.3 %) patients. Rufinamide was well tolerated by most of the patients. Side effects were observed in 6 (19 %) participants. Side effects (forced normalization) caused withdrawal of rufinamide in 1 (3.2 %) patient. Currently, 10 (32 %) patients continue to take rufinamide. Sixteen patients received rufinamide for <6 months, 17 patients – for >6 months, 5 patients – for >12 months, and 1 patient – for >2 years.

Conclusion. Our findings are consistent with the results obtained by foreign authors in routine clinical practice. In our study, rufinamide was used only in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy that earlier received many of currently available AEDs (both in monotherapy and in combination with other drugs). All study participants were earlier treated with at least three different AEDs that were ineffective. Seven patients received more than 8 AEDs in various combinations. This initial drug resistance should be taken into account when analyzing the data, which can not be extrapolated to patients with unknown drug resistance. We assume that the early introduction of rufinamide (prior to the detection of drug resistance) might have yielded better results.

Lennox–Gastaut syndrome (LGS) is a childhood epileptic encephalopathy characterized by frequent polymorphic seizures (including tonic axial seizures), pronounced cognitive impairment, typical changes in the electroencephalogram and drug resistance. Since the disease is quite common (accounts for 4–10 % of all childhood epilepsy) and is characterized by various seizures that are frequently resistant to multiple antiepileptic drugs, great hopes are currently centered on the development of novel antiepileptic drugs with principally different mechanisms of action aimed to treat this severe form of epilepsy. Rufinamide (inovelon) is a promising antiepileptic drug for LGS therapy. In 2008, it was approved by the FDA as an adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with LGS in adults and children over 4 years of age. Rufinamide demonstrated its efficacy against both drop seizures (tonic/atonic) and generalized seizures (tonic, atonic and tonic-clonic) in LGS. In January 2015, the drug was approved for use in the Russian Federation for seizures associated with LGS in patients over 4 years of age. Multiple studies have demonstrated high efficacy and good tolerability of rufinamide in children and adults with epilepsy. In this article, we provide a systematic review of the currently available data on the use of rufinamide in the treatment of seizures associated with LGS.

Lennox–Gastaut syndrome (LGS) is a childhood epileptic encephalopathy characterized by frequent polymorphic seizures (including tonic axial seizures), pronounced cognitive impairment, typical changes in the electroencephalogram and drug resistance. Frequency of LGS accounts for approximately 4–10 % of all childhood epilepsy. The difficulties in the diagnosis and treatment of LGS are associated with the presence of various seizures that are frequently resistant to multiple antiepileptic drugs as well as with the disease evolution with age. This review covers the main principles of LGS therapy, analyzes the most common antiepileptic drugs used in LGS, and describes clinical trials evaluating the efficacy and tolerability of antiepileptic drugs in LGS. The article contains a detailed algorithm for the treatment of LGS, based on international guidelines and expert opinions.