Medicines to prevent epileptic seizures are called antiepileptics. The goal is to find an effective antiepileptic medicine that causes the fewest side effects.

Taking only one antiepileptic medicine prevents seizures in up to 7 out of 10 people with partial seizures. About 8 out of 10 people have complete seizure control when they take more than one antiepileptic medicine.¹ Although many people experience side effects, medicine is still the best way to prevent epileptic seizures. The benefits of treatment with medicine usually outweigh the drawbacks.

There are many antiepileptic medicines (called AEDs, anticonvulsants, or antiseizure medicines), but they do not all treat the same types of seizures. The first step your doctor takes in choosing a medicine to treat your seizures is to identify the types of seizures you have.

It may take time and careful, controlled adjustments by you and your doctor to find the combination, schedule, and dosing of medicine to best manage your epilepsy. The goal is to prevent seizures while causing as few unwanted side effects as possible. After you and your doctor figure out the most effective medicine program for you, it is important that you follow your program exactly as prescribed.

Using a single antiepileptic medicine is often better than using more than one medicine. Single medicine use causes fewer side effects and does not carry the risk of interacting with other medicines. The chances of missing a dose or taking it at the wrong time are also lower with just one medicine.

When treatment with one medicine does not work, adding a second medicine can sometimes improve seizure control. Also, if you have several types of seizures, you may need to take more than one medicine.

Medication Choices

Many medicines are used to treat epilepsy. Some are used alone, and some are used only along with other medicines. Your medicine options depend in part on what types of seizures you have.

Medicines that may be used first to treat epileptic seizures include:^{4, 5}

• Carbamazepine (Tegretol, Carbatrol).
• Ethosuximide (Zarontin), for absence seizures only.
• Topiramate (Topamax).
• Oxcarbazepine (Trileptal).
• Phenytoin (Dilantin, Phenytek) or fosphenytoin (Cerebyx).
• Valproic acid or divalproex sodium (Depakene, Depakote).
• Phenobarbital (Luminal Sodium, Solfoton). Phenobarbital is a first-line medicine for newborns.
• Primidone (Mysoline). The body converts primidone into phenobarbital.

If epileptic seizures continue even though you are being treated, your doctor may prescribe one or more of the following medicines:

• Felbamate (Felbatol)
• Gabapentin (Neurontin)
• Lamotrigine (Lamictal)
• Levetiracetam (Keppra)
• Tiagabine (Gabitril)
• Topiramate (Topamax)
• Zonisamide (Zonegran)
• Benzodiazepines (for example, Diastat, Tranxene, Valium)
• Phenobarbital (Luminal Sodium, Solfoton) (Phenobarbital is a first-line medicine for newborns.)
• Primidone (Mysoline). The body converts primidone into phenobarbital.
• Pregabalin (Lyrica). This medicine is intended to be used along with other antiseizure medicine.