Using a combination therapy approach for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy in adults and adolescents

This study investigated whether Modified Atkins Diet (MAD) together with standard drug therapy (SDT) results in reduced seizures and improved psychological outcomes in people (n=160; aged 10–55 years) with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE).
At 6 months, seizure reduction of more than 50% was noted in 26.2% in the intervention arm (SDT plus MAD) versus 2.5% in the control group (SDT only). The intervention arm elicited a higher improvement in the quality of life than the control group (mean difference, 9.6; 95% CI 4.3–14.9, P<0.001).
According to the authors, a combination therapy approach to include MAD is effective for reduced seizure frequency and improved behavioral outcomes in people with DRE.