Time to Stop (TTS) Trial: a trial to investigate early antiepileptic drug withdrawal after pediatric epilepsy surgery

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Intractable epilepsy; Nervous System Diseases; Other epilepsy

• Registration Number: ISRCTN88423240
• Lead Sponsor: niversity Medical Center Utrecht (Netherlands)

Brief Summary

Not available

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2013-05-08
• Last Update Posted: 5 June 2017

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 180

Inclusion Criteria

1. Younger than 16 years at surgery, with focal non-idiopathic epilepsy
2. Native speaker in the language the neuropsychological tests have to be taken
3. Be able to perform a Conner's Performance Test preoperatively (generally that means age > 4 yrs, and IQ > 60)
4. Underwent intentional curative epilepsy surgery
5. After surgery, the treating physician considers withdrawal of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs), with the intention to completely discontinue medication, at whatever point in time.
6. Both the treating physician, the patient, if capable, and the parents agree with randomization in either arm of the study
7. Postoperative seizure freedom was achieved (with the exception of so called running down seizures not outlasting longer than two weeks)

Exclusion Criteria

1. A contraindication to be randomized to either of the two withdrawal arms
2. The treating physician does not want to discontinue all AEDs within a maximum time frame of eight months as prescribed in the study protocol.
3. Multifocal MRI abnormalities, incomplete resection of the anatomical or epileptogenic lesion certified before randomisation (if considered necessary by the treating physician by MRI) and, if a postoperative EEG is performed before randomisation, epileptic EEG abnormalities (these being the most important risk factors of seizure recurrence or unfavourable long-term seizure outcome).
4. Use of more than three AEDs at time of surgery. The reason to choose for a maximum of three AEDs is that clinicians would not want to wait 12 months (the late withdrawal arm) to withdraw the first AED in patients that use so many AEDs. Furthermore, withdrawing AEDs within 8 months seems reasonable and feasible for a maximum of three AEDs.
5. Patients who are on a ketogenic diet or have a vagal nerve stimulator implanted.
6. If surgery is primarily intended as tumor surgery and not as epilepsy surgery

Study & Design

• Study Type: Interventional
• Study Design: Not specified

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
The primary objective of the study is to assess whether early AED withdrawal improves cognitive function, in terms of attention, information processing- and psychomotor speed, memory, language and IQ/DQ scores. Attention will be the main outcome measure, on which the power calculation is based.<br><br>Attention deficits (AD) are assessed using a Conner's Performance (Kiddie) test and calculate IQ/DQ scores. The other neuropsychological domains will be assessed by subtests of the intelligence tests. We will compare neuropsychological outcome between the two withdrawal groups at t1 (preoperatively), t2 (at 12 months) and t3 (at 24 months).