Choosing treatment wisely

Reflex prescribing

Every prescription deserves a reason and a review.

Different seizures need different treatment plans. A medicine started during an emergency may need a fresh look later. If events continue or side effects become troublesome, the diagnosis and treatment plan deserve another look.

Questions for your next visit Understand reflex prescribing

When a prescription becomes a habit

Here, reflex prescribing means starting or continuing a medicine mainly out of habit, without checking carefully enough why that person needs it and whether it still suits them.

A prescription can be carried forward from one hospital stay or appointment to the next. The original reason may become unclear. Side effects may be overlooked. Continuing events may lead to more treatment before the diagnosis is revisited.

A useful treatment conversation answers three questions:

THE REASON

Why this medicine?

THE PERSON

Why is it right for me?

THE PLAN

When will we review it?

An emergency prescription needs a follow-up plan

In an emergency, doctors may need to treat a seizure before all the answers are available. Once the immediate problem has been treated, the longer-term plan can be considered.

1
Treat the urgent problem
The immediate priority may be stopping a prolonged seizure or treating seizures during a serious illness.
2
Understand what happened
Was it an epileptic seizure? Was it linked to an acute illness or injury? If epilepsy is present, what type is it?
3
Agree on the next review
Does the medicine still have a clear purpose? Is it helping? Who will review the benefit, side effects and need to continue?

Some people need ongoing treatment. Others need a different plan after assessment. A review may confirm that the current medicine remains the best choice.

Where does levetiracetam fit?

Levetiracetam, often known as Keppra, is widely used for epilepsy and in acute seizure care. The best ongoing medicine depends on the type of epilepsy and the person taking it.

The SANAD II trial found that lamotrigine performed better overall as a planned first treatment for newly diagnosed focal epilepsy. This is useful information for a treatment discussion.

Current NICE and WHO guidance still include both lamotrigine and levetiracetam as first options for focal seizures. Your other health conditions, medicines, previous response, side effects and pregnancy considerations can affect the choice.

The epilepsy type matters

Focal epilepsy is common in adults. A whole-body convulsion can occur in focal or generalised epilepsy, so its appearance alone does not settle the diagnosis. Understanding the epilepsy type helps guide treatment; some medicines can worsen particular seizure types when the match is wrong.

What do the prescribing studies show?

Levetiracetam is a frequent choice in many settings. These examples explain why treatment decisions deserve attention. They do not tell us how many prescriptions were inappropriate.

60%

At emergency discharge

135 of 225 seizure patients were taking levetiracetam at discharge from one Spanish emergency department.

2014–2015; age over 15. Includes existing treatment and new prescriptions; prolonged status seizures were excluded.

93%

In a selected hospital group

497 of 532 patients receiving ongoing seizure medication during admission received levetiracetam across five US centres.

2021; adults monitored for acute seizure concerns, with no previous epilepsy. This group received ongoing seizure medicine for at least 48 hours. Included ICU and ward patients; some received several medicines.

57%

First medicine for focal epilepsy

254 of 443 people with newly diagnosed focal epilepsy started levetiracetam as their only seizure medicine.

International research cohort, 2012–2017. Mainly adults, with adolescents included. Recruitment was before SANAD II was published.

80%

Focal epilepsy in an ED study

About 80% of 471 people with confirmed epilepsy in two German emergency departments had focal epilepsy.

Berlin, 2014; adults. This describes epilepsy type, not prescribing, and does not include everyone arriving with a seizure.

Different countries, years and patient groups were studied. The first three figures measure medicine use; the fourth describes epilepsy type. None is a worldwide rate of reflex prescribing, and none measures levetiracetam as a share of every medicine prescribed.

When events continue, revisit the whole picture

Continuing attacks deserve a careful review. The events may need a clearer diagnosis, the epilepsy type may need reassessment, or the treatment may be difficult to take or tolerate. Sometimes an underlying condition needs its own treatment.

Some people have apparent treatment resistance: events continue because of a potentially correctable problem. Others have genuinely drug-resistant epilepsy.

Drug-resistant epilepsy means seizures continue despite two appropriately chosen, adequately tried and tolerated treatment plans. Simply having been prescribed two medicines does not always establish this.

What can go wrong when the diagnosis or treatment does not fit?

Side effects can become an unnecessary burden

Mood, behaviour and other treatment effects deserve attention alongside seizure control. Side effects may be especially difficult to justify if the original reason for treatment is no longer clear.

A review can consider whether symptoms are related to the medicine, the condition being treated or another cause.

Understand side effects

The wrong medicine can worsen some seizure types

Published studies describe people with generalised epilepsy whose seizures worsened after medicines unsuitable for their seizure types, including carbamazepine or phenytoin. This can make epilepsy look harder to control.

These studies support checking the epilepsy classification. They do not show that levetiracetam commonly worsens focal epilepsy.

Some seizure-like events need a different diagnosis and care

Functional seizures are real, involuntary events that can resemble epileptic seizures. They need appropriate care and can occur alongside epilepsy. Reports describe people receiving repeated medicines or intensive emergency treatment because functional seizures were mistaken for epilepsy.

A specialist may use the history, witness accounts and sometimes video-EEG to clarify events. A normal routine EEG on its own does not rule out epilepsy.

Understand other possible causes

An underlying cause may need its own treatment

Some seizures are part of a condition that needs treatment beyond seizure medicines. One example is a particular immune-related brain illness, LGI1 encephalitis.

In an observational study, earlier immune treatment was associated with better outcomes. This illustrates why recognising the cause matters; it does not mean everyone with continuing seizures needs immune treatment.

Can diagnostic errors lead to unnecessary procedures?

Yes. One study found that 13 of 60 people who already had a vagus nerve stimulator and were referred to a specialist monitoring unit had exclusively functional seizures. Their implants had been unnecessary. This was a selected referral group, not a sample of all people receiving VNS.

A small report also described an adult whose seizures did not improve after a brain resection, following misleading findings about the epilepsy type and where seizures began. An unsuccessful operation alone does not show that it was unreasonable to consider surgery. These reports cannot establish how often surgery is unnecessary.

The evidence does not establish that levetiracetam causes permanent drug resistance and then unnecessary surgery. People with genuine drug-resistant epilepsy should still have timely specialist assessment. A surgical evaluation is a thorough review of the diagnosis and treatment options; it does not automatically mean having an operation.

Take this conversation to your next visit

Six questions worth asking

What type of seizures or epilepsy do I have, and how certain is the diagnosis?
Why was this medicine chosen for me?
Was it started for a temporary problem or for ongoing epilepsy?
What is the plan if events continue?
Could changes in my mood, behaviour or daily functioning be related to treatment?
When is my next medication review, and who will review the plan?

Bring your medicine list or photographs of the packs, a record of recent events and side effects, and any witness account or video obtained safely.

Open the appointment toolkit

For health professionals

The practical task is to keep the prescription connected to a diagnosis, a treatment goal and a review plan.

A brief review before treatment is carried forward

Record the indication: established epilepsy, an acute symptomatic seizure, status treatment or prophylaxis.
Check the event and epilepsy classification: preserve uncertainty when the diagnosis is unresolved.
Explain the choice: suitability for this patient, expected benefit and important adverse effects.
Set the review: who will reassess the need for treatment, and when?
Reconstruct previous trials: indication, dose, duration, use, response and reason for stopping before confirming drug resistance.
Refer when appropriate: diagnostic uncertainty and genuine drug resistance both deserve timely specialist assessment.

SANAD II supports lamotrigine for planned initial focal-epilepsy treatment at group level. An adequate levetiracetam trial can still count towards drug resistance. High prescribing share alone is not a measure of inappropriate care.

Explore the evidence

The main message is practical: understand the diagnosis, choose treatment for the individual, and review the plan. The studies and guidance behind this page are available below.

Sources and further reading

This is an educational summary of a targeted evidence review. Prescribing studies used different populations and definitions. Selected reports of harm cannot tell us everyone’s risk, and the research does not quantify a global rate of inappropriate prescribing.

Emergency prescribing in Spain (opens in a new tab)
Toledo et al. Seizure, 2018. A selected emergency-discharge cohort from 2014–2015.
Treatment continued after intensive care (opens in a new tab)
Vorderwülbecke et al. Journal of Neurology, 2018. Seven adult ICUs in Germany.
Acute hospital prescribing in the US (opens in a new tab)
Zafar et al. JAMA Neurology, 2024. Five-centre study of patients monitored for acute seizure concerns in 2021.
Treatment after an acute symptomatic seizure (opens in a new tab)
Herzig-Nichtweiß et al. Annals of Intensive Care, 2023. The observational PROSE study; status epilepticus was excluded.
First medicine for focal epilepsy (opens in a new tab)
Fox et al. Epilepsia, 2023. Human Epilepsy Project prescribing study; recruitment preceded SANAD II.
Epilepsy types seen in emergency care (opens in a new tab)
Reinecke et al. Journal of Neurology, 2022. Adult presentations at two Berlin emergency departments in 2014.
SANAD II: planned treatment for focal epilepsy (opens in a new tab)
Marson et al. The Lancet, 2021. Randomised comparison of lamotrigine, levetiracetam and zonisamide.
NICE treatment guidance (opens in a new tab)
NG217, recommendation 5.2.1: lamotrigine or levetiracetam as first-line monotherapy for focal seizures.
WHO treatment guidance (opens in a new tab)
mhGAP recommendation, 2023. Antiseizure medicines for adults and children.
Emergency treatment of prolonged seizures (opens in a new tab)
Chamberlain et al. The Lancet, 2020. ESETT compared emergency treatments for convulsive status after benzodiazepines.
What drug-resistant epilepsy means (opens in a new tab)
Kwan et al. Epilepsia, 2010. ILAE consensus definition requiring two tolerated, appropriately chosen and used treatment schedules.
When the wrong medicine worsens seizures (opens in a new tab)
Genton et al. Neurology, 2000. Selected patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy exposed to carbamazepine or phenytoin; not a levetiracetam study.
Functional seizures treated as status (opens in a new tab)
Jungilligens et al. JNNP, 2021. Reanalysis of RAMPART and ESETT, including children and adults.
Misdiagnosis and apparent resistance (opens in a new tab)
Smith et al. QJM, 1999. Historical specialist-referral cohort; not a population prevalence estimate.
Unnecessary VNS after misdiagnosis (opens in a new tab)
Arain et al. Epilepsy & Behavior, 2011. Selected patients already implanted with a stimulator and referred to one monitoring unit.
Misleading findings before surgery (opens in a new tab)
Fauser et al. Epilepsia Open, 2020. Small, selected series of generalised epilepsies with misleading frontal lesions; not a surgical complication rate.
Timely specialist and surgical evaluation (opens in a new tab)
Jehi et al. Epilepsia, 2022. ILAE expert consensus on referral for epilepsy surgery evaluation.
Recognising a treatable immune cause (opens in a new tab)
Thompson et al. Brain, 2018. Observational study of LGI1-associated seizures and the timing of immunotherapy.
Diagnosis and the limits of a routine EEG (opens in a new tab)
NICE NG217, diagnosis and assessment. A normal routine EEG must not be used to exclude epilepsy.

Evidence reviewed: 18 October 2026. This page supports an individual treatment conversation; it cannot determine whether your medicine should be changed.

Understand more, at your own paceRead in more depthOpen the topics you need for explanations, practical questions and source references.

New practical questions checked 5 November 2026. Reading guides retain their own source dates. This online expansion is additional to the existing downloadable editions.

Iatrogenic refractory epilepsyWhen apparent treatment resistance calls for a careful diagnosis and treatment review.

Questions you may have

What does “iatrogenic refractory epilepsy” mean here?

These sites use the phrase to discuss apparent treatment resistance that may be related to diagnosis or treatment. It is a prompt to review the whole picture, not a new diagnosis to apply to yourself.

ILAE · drug-resistant epilepsy definition ↗ · Smith et al. · epilepsy misdiagnosis in a specialist referral cohort ↗

How might treatment problems look like resistance?

Possibilities include events that have another explanation, an epilepsy type that has not been recognised, a medicine unsuitable for that seizure pattern, or treatment effects mistaken for new symptoms. More than one issue can coexist.

ILAE EpilepsyDiagnosis · epilepsy imitators ↗ · Genton et al. · seizure aggravation in selected juvenile myoclonic epilepsy patients ↗

Does this mean levetiracetam is the cause?

No. Levetiracetam is an appropriate option for many people. The concern is a prescription without a clear individual rationale and review, rather than one medicine being universally wrong. Do not stop or change treatment on your own.

NICE NG217 · seizure-specific treatment ↗ · Australian Government Medicine Finder · levetiracetam ↗

What can I ask at my review?

Ask whether the events are all the same, whether the epilepsy type is clear, what each medicine has achieved, and what might explain continuing symptoms. Bring your medicine list, event diary and side-effect concerns.

What is the diagnosis being treated?
What has each treatment helped or worsened?
What further assessment would change the plan?

NICE NG217 · treatment and monitoring ↗

Could I still have genuine drug-resistant epilepsy?

Yes. Some epilepsies remain difficult to control despite appropriate treatment. After two suitable, adequately used treatment schedules fail, specialist assessment should not be delayed while the diagnosis and treatment history are reviewed.

ILAE · drug-resistant epilepsy definition ↗ · ILAE · specialist and surgical evaluation ↗

Sources and further reading

MedicineWise — use treatment confidentlyThe best antiseizure medicine is the one that suits the person’s epilepsy and circumstances, controls seizures and has acceptable adverse effects. Levetiracetam is a useful option for many people; the important question is whether any medicine is appropriate for the individual rather than routinely favoured or routinely avoided.

Questions you may have

Are Keppra and levetiracetam the same medicine name?

Levetiracetam is the ingredient; Keppra is a brand example. Match the brand, formulation and strength on the pack to its official Australian PI or CMI. Do not change or stop treatment independently.

What should I do about a missed dose?

Ask your pharmacist or prescriber for instructions for your exact medicine, formulation and schedule. Keep that advice with your medicine list. Avoid improvising a catch-up dose or changing subsequent doses yourself.

Epilepsy Action Australia · medication management (2026) ↗

What if vomiting or illness disrupts my medicine?

Ask for advice if you cannot take or keep down your usual treatment. The response depends on the medicine and circumstances. A written illness plan is useful when this has happened before.

Epilepsy Action Australia · medication management (2026) ↗

What should I include in my medicine list?

Include the ingredient, brand, strength, prescribed schedule and reason for each medicine. Add non-prescription products, supplements, allergies and previous reactions. Take the list to medical and pharmacy appointments.

Epilepsy Action Australia · medication management (2026) ↗

Where can I read the full official leaflet?

The CMI is written for consumers; the PI contains prescribing information. Use the exact product name on your box in the official lookup. These website summaries do not reproduce every warning or interaction.

TGA · official PI and CMI lookup ↗

What should I ask if a brand or tablet appearance changes?

Check the ingredient, strength, formulation and directions with your pharmacist. Ask whether any change matters for your treatment plan before assuming two differently labelled products are interchangeable.

TGA · official PI and CMI lookup ↗

Is levetiracetam a bad medicine?

No. It is a useful treatment for appropriate seizure types. Ask why it was chosen for you and report troublesome effects. Thoughtful prescribing means an individual reason and review plan, not avoiding one medicine for everyone.

Australian Government Medicine Finder · levetiracetam ↗

Read the guide in depth

Know why this medicine was selected

Ask which seizure type or epilepsy syndrome the medicine is intended to treat. Other considerations include age, reproductive plans, other conditions, interactions and previous response. A medicine comparison helps structure the conversation, but a list of advantages cannot predict how you personally will respond.

Write the reason for choosing it and the agreed treatment goal.
Ask when benefits and tolerability will be reviewed.

Supporting source ↗ · SANAD II · focal epilepsy trial ↗ · SANAD II · generalised / unclassified epilepsy trial ↗

Build a reliable medicine record

Record the active ingredient, brand if relevant, strength, formulation, prescribed times and prescriber. Include non-epilepsy medicines, supplements and allergies. A photograph can help identify packaging, but a photograph alone is not a verified current prescription. Check changes with the pharmacist before updating your list.

Use the pharmacy label and your current prescription as the starting point.
Bring one up-to-date list to every clinician and pharmacy.
Record who confirmed a change and the date.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Missed doses, vomiting and supply gaps

Ask in advance for instructions specific to each medicine. What to do depends on the formulation, timing and clinical situation; do not use one generic rule for all drugs. Do not double a dose unless your clinician’s medicine-specific plan expressly directs that action. If you cannot retain medicines or are running out, contact your pharmacist or treating team promptly.

Agree a refill reminder before the supply becomes urgent.
Use a checked organiser or routine if helpful.
Ask whether storage, crushing or swallowing changes are safe for that formulation.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Track benefit and side effects together

A useful review looks at both seizures and everyday function. Keep a short record of sleepiness, balance, concentration, mood or other problems and when they started. Do not assume that every new symptom is caused by medicine, or dismiss a symptom simply because it is not common.

Record start dates and prescribed changes beside symptoms.
Describe the effect on work, study, relationships or sleep.
Contact the prescriber for persistent or troublesome adverse effects.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Know the urgent warning instructions

Read the serious adverse-effect section of your exact medicine leaflet and ask the pharmacist to explain it. Severe allergy symptoms, collapse, major breathing difficulty or rapidly worsening illness need emergency assessment. A new rash, particularly with fever, blisters or mouth/eye involvement, needs urgent medical advice.

For a medical emergency in Australia call 000.
Take the medicine list or packaging with you.
Obtain urgent clinician instructions about further doses when a serious reaction is suspected.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Interactions, contraception and pregnancy

Check with a pharmacist before adding or stopping any prescription, over-the-counter or complementary product. Some antiseizure medicines affect contraception, and hormonal treatment can affect some antiseizure medicine levels. Pregnancy planning needs a specific medicine review; stopping treatment abruptly after a positive pregnancy test can create serious risk.

Tell every prescriber you take antiseizure medicine.
Ask about reproductive plans even if pregnancy is not imminent.
Keep pregnancy advice medicine-specific rather than relying on a category letter alone.

TGA · pregnancy precautions ↗ · Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

When control is incomplete

A breakthrough event should prompt review of what happened, whether it was epileptic, the medicine taken, interactions, adherence barriers and the treatment plan. Persisting seizures are not a personal failure. Ask whether an epilepsy specialist review or additional assessment could clarify the next options.

Report new seizure types and injuries.
Discuss affordability, supply or side-effect barriers openly.
Do not add leftover medicines or borrow another person’s treatment.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Changing or stopping treatment needs a plan

Being seizure-free does not mean medicine can automatically stop. Discuss recurrence risk, the epilepsy syndrome, driving implications and personal priorities with the prescriber. If a change is agreed, obtain a written schedule, instructions for recurrence, and a follow-up date. Do not improvise a taper or restart an old schedule.

Ask what should happen if symptoms recur.
Check whether work, travel or conception plans affect timing.
Make sure all clinicians and the pharmacist have the final regimen.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

What comparative medicine trials actually tell us

SANAD II supports lamotrigine as an important first-line option for newly diagnosed focal epilepsy, but it does not show that another drug cannot be the right choice for an individual. In generalised and unclassifiable epilepsy, valproate performed better than levetiracetam on important trial outcomes; its reproductive risks can change the choice substantially. Childhood absence epilepsy has a different evidence base. There is no single best medicine for everyone.

SANAD II · focal epilepsy trial ↗ · SANAD II · generalised / unclassified epilepsy trial ↗ · Supporting source ↗

After two unsuccessful appropriate medicine schedules

Ask whether the working definition of drug-resistant epilepsy applies and whether a specialist centre should reassess your options. Check whether previous medicines were appropriate, tolerated and adequately tried, and whether all current events are epileptic. Access barriers and difficulty taking treatment deserve help rather than blame.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Diet and prescription cannabidiol are specialist treatments

A ketogenic dietary therapy may help selected people, with stronger trial evidence in children than adults. It requires nutritional supervision and monitoring. Purified prescription cannabidiol has trial evidence in particular severe syndromes; that evidence does not establish benefit from every cannabis product or for every epilepsy. Ask about interactions, adverse effects and local approval.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Reproductive planning includes all relevant partners

Check contraception interactions and discuss pregnancy plans before making treatment changes. Australian valproate advice includes established risks from exposure during pregnancy and a less certain possible paternal-exposure signal. Ask the prescriber what the current advice means for your situation. Do not stop treatment to manage these risks without an agreed alternative plan.

Supporting source ↗ · Supporting source ↗

Use the exact product information

The active ingredient, formulation, strength and other medicines all affect safe use. Use the current Australian CMI for patient instructions and PI for professional detail, checked with your pharmacist. The short Wise Choice summaries highlight selected issues and are not complete interaction, contraindication or dosing references.

Supporting source ↗

Sources and further reading

Open the reading and print view →

Appointment ToolkitPrepare a concise, useful account of what is happening and leave with a plan you understand.

Questions you may have

What should I bring to my next appointment?

Bring your medicine list, seizure diary, witness descriptions, side-effect concerns and important questions. Include changes in mood, sleep, school, work or pregnancy plans. Ask for the agreed next steps in writing.

NICE NG217 · information and support ↗

Read the guide in depth

Choose the purpose of the visit

Write your three main priorities before the appointment: understanding the diagnosis, improving control, managing a side effect or making a life decision. Mention urgent changes when booking so the clinic can triage appropriately.

Do not wait for a routine appointment for a seizure emergency or a serious medicine reaction.

Supporting source ↗

Build a one-page story

Describe what happens before, during and after each type of event, the age it began, frequency, injuries and recovery. Include the last event date and whether the pattern is changing.

If a witness can attend with consent, ask them to describe observations in their own words. A safely recorded video can be helpful, but filming must never delay first aid or compromise privacy.

Bring the treatment record

Bring medicine names, formulations, doses and times from labels; record past medicines and why each stopped. Include supplements, contraception, allergies and other diagnoses.

Explain practical barriers such as supply, swallowing, cost, shift work or adverse effects. These are care problems to solve together. Do not change doses while preparing for the visit.

Ask about diagnosis and next tests

Ask what supports the diagnosis and whether there are alternatives. Clarify your seizure type or syndrome if known. Ask what the EEG, scan or other test can and cannot show, and how results will reach you.

If seizures continue, ask whether diagnosis, medicine suitability, adherence and further specialist assessment need review before another treatment is added.

Leave with written next steps

Repeat the plan back in your own words. Ask for a written schedule if treatment changes. Confirm what to do after a missed dose, vomiting, an adverse effect or another seizure.

Clarify first aid, rescue treatment if prescribed, driving, pregnancy plans and any work or water precautions that apply to you. Ask who answers questions between appointments.

Make follow-up reliable

Before leaving, check test bookings, referral requirements, prescription supply and the date or trigger for review. Keep copies of letters and the current action plan together.

If you cannot follow the plan because of cost, availability or transport, contact the clinic rather than silently delaying treatment.

Sources and further reading

Open the reading and print view →

EpiResearch: understand research before joiningLearn how to judge a study invitation and prepare questions for your treating clinician.

Questions you may have

How do I judge a claim about a new treatment?

Ask who was studied, what it was compared with, which outcomes improved, what harms occurred and whether the findings apply to you. An encouraging result does not automatically mean a treatment is suitable for every epilepsy.

SANAD II · focal epilepsy trial ↗

Read the guide in depth

What a study may ask of you

Research may test a medicine, device, operation, behaviour change or a way of delivering care. Other projects observe existing treatment or collect interviews. The study design affects what participation means.

Ask whether your normal care continues, whether treatment is allocated by chance and whether a placebo is involved. A study is designed to answer a question; benefit for an individual is uncertain.

Check the study and its team

Use a recognised trial registry and check the full study identifier, sponsor, locations and current contact details. Ask for the participant information sheet and ethics-approval details.

A registry entry is a starting point, not a personal recommendation or assurance that recruitment is still open. Confirm with the study team and your treating clinician.

Understand informed consent

Ask for enough time to read and discuss the information. Participation is voluntary. Ask what withdrawing involves, how already collected data are handled and whether stopping treatment needs clinical supervision.

For a child or someone requiring decision support, ask how consent and their own agreement will be managed. You can ask for an interpreter or accessible explanation.

Clarify burden, cost and safety

List visits, travel, blood tests, scans, time off work and any changes to medicines or contraception. Ask which costs are reimbursed, who covers injury and who answers urgent problems.

Understand possible benefits, known risks and uncertainty. Ask how adverse effects are reported, whether driving may be affected and what care continues after the study ends.

Protect your information

Ask who sees identifiable information, whether it leaves Australia, how long it is retained and whether samples or records may be used for future studies. Distinguish agreeing to this study from optional future research.

Do not send medical records to an unverified social account or pay a fee merely to secure entry into a supposed trial. Verify unexpected recruitment messages using the institution’s official contact.

Take the questions to your clinician

Bring the information sheet and study identifier to your review. Discuss how the study fits your seizure type, other treatments, pregnancy plans and practical support.

Ask whether results will be shared with participants and who will manage any treatment transition. EpilepsyWise does not currently recommend or recruit for individual trials.

Sources and further reading

Open the reading and print view →

Reflex prescribing

When a prescription becomes a habit

An emergency prescription needs a follow-up plan

Treat the urgent problem

Understand what happened

Agree on the next review

Where does levetiracetam fit?

The epilepsy type matters

What do the prescribing studies show?

At emergency discharge

In a selected hospital group

First medicine for focal epilepsy

Focal epilepsy in an ED study

When events continue, revisit the whole picture

What can go wrong when the diagnosis or treatment does not fit?

Six questions worth asking

For health professionals

Explore the evidence

Questions you may have

Questions you may have

Read the guide in depth

Questions you may have

Read the guide in depth

Questions you may have

Read the guide in depth

Contact LevWise

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