Psychiatry Investig.  2020 May;17(5):412-416. 10.30773/pi.2019.0287.

Treatment of Children and Adolescents with Epilepsy with Atomoxetine

• Park KJ
• Ahn H
• Yum MS
• Ko TS
• Kim HW

• KMID: 2501459
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.30773/pi.2019.0287

Abstract

Objective
The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of atomoxetine in Korean children and adolescents with epilepsy.
Methods
We retrospectively reviewed the electronic medical records of 105 children and adolescents with epilepsy treated with atomoxetine. Effectiveness was measured with the Clinical Global Impressions-Severity (CGI-S) and/or Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement (CGI-I) scales at baseline, and after 4 and 12 weeks. We defined response to atomoxetine as a CGI-I score less than three at week 12. Safety was evaluated at each visit, based on clinical assessment by a child and adolescent psychiatrist and reports from participants or their caregivers.
Results
In total participants (n=105), 33 (31.4%) showed a response to treatment: a significant decrease in CGI-S scale score was observed over 12 weeks of atomoxetine treatment. The most common adverse event (AE) was decreased appetite (n=16, 15.2%), and life-threatening AEs were not observed. Seizure aggravation due to atomoxetine was observed in 7.6% (n=8) of total participants, and one of them discontinued atomoxetine.
Conclusion
Our results provide preliminary evidence of the effectiveness and safety of atomoxetine in children and adolescents with epilepsy.

Keyword

Atomoxetine, Effectiveness, Epilepsy, Safety