As reported by Independent, Children with a rare epilepsy syndrome in England will soon benefit from fenfluramine, a newly approved treatment that helps reduce seizures
Hundreds of children in England with a rare and severe form of epilepsy are set to benefit from a new drug being rolled out on the NHS.
Fenfluramine has been recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) for patients aged two and over with Lennox–Gastaut syndrome (LGS). It is the first non-cannabis-based treatment approved for this form of epilepsy, according to NHS officials.
LGS is a rare and severe form of epilepsy that starts in early childhood and is resistant to many treatments. It is thought that around 1-2% of the 60,000 children in England with epilepsy have LGS.
The drug is taken as an oral liquid medicine daily and works by increasing the levels of serotonin in the brain to reduce seizures.
Professor Stephen Powis, national medical director at NHS England said the recommendation offers patients and their families “new hope”.
Clinical trials suggest fenfluramine can slash the frequency of seizures that cause patients to lose consciousness and muscle control, known as drop seizures, by 26.5% on average.
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