Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-m8qmq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T10:34:58.907Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 22 - Botanical Treatments for Medication-Resistant Epilepsy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 August 2020

By
Steven C. Schachter
Edited by
John M. Stern ,
Raman Sankar  and
Michael Sperling
John M. Stern
Affiliation:
Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
Raman Sankar
Affiliation:
Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
Michael Sperling
Affiliation:
Jefferson Hospital for Neurosciences, Philadelphia, PA
Get access

Summary

Botanical treatments have been used by persons with epilepsy, especially for convulsive seizures, dating from 6000 BC in India [1], from 3000 BC in China and in Peru, and for centuries in Africa and South America. In traditional Western medicine, botanical treatments were widely used to treat seizures before the advent of compounds such as bromide and phenobarbital. For instance, Gowers documented his use of Cannabis indica (see also section on Cannabis and its Derivatives) and digitalis, the latter derived from the Foxglove plant (Digitalis purpurea) [2].

Type
Chapter
Information
Medication-Resistant Epilepsy
Diagnosis and Treatment
 , pp. 248 - 255
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Jain, S. Ayurveda: the ancient Indian system of medicine. In: Devinsky, O, Schachter, S, Pacia, S (eds.), Complementary and Alternative Therapies for Epilepsy. New York: Demos Medical Publishing, 2005:123–128Google Scholar
Gowers, WR. Epilepsy and Other Chronic Convulsive Diseases: Their Causes, Symptoms, & Treatment. London: Churchill, 1881:264–268, 271Google Scholar
Sucher, NJ, Carles, MC. A pharmacological basis of herbal medicines for epilepsy. Epilepsy Behav 2015;52(Part B):308–318CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Samuels, N, Finkelstein, Y, Singer, SR, Oberbaum, M. Herbal medicine and epilepsy: proconvulsive effects and interactions with antiepileptic drugs. Epilepsia 2008;49:373–380Google Scholar
Mbuba, CK, Ngugi, AK, Newton, CR, Carter, JA. The epilepsy treatment gap in developing countries: a systematic review of the magnitude, causes, and intervention strategies. Epilepsia 2008;49:1491–1503Google Scholar
Ngugi, AK, Bottomley, C, Kleinschmidt, I, Sander, JW, Newton, CR. Estimation of the burden of active and life-time epilepsy: a meta-analytic approach. Epilepsia 2010;51:883–890Google Scholar
Lai, CW, Lai, YH. History of epilepsy in Chinese traditional medicine. Epilepsia 1991;32:299–302Google Scholar
Xiao, F, Yan, B, Chen, L, Zhou, D. Review of the use of botanicals for epilepsy in complementary medical systems: traditional Chinese medicine. Epilepsy Behav. 2015;52(Part B):281–289Google Scholar
Sriranjini, SJ, Sandhya, K, Mamta, VS. Ayurveda and botanical drugs for epilepsy: current evidence and future prospects. Epilepsy Behav. 2015;52(Part B):290–296CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wahner-Roedler, DL, Elkin, PL, Vincent, A, et al. Use of complementary and alternative medical therapies by patients referred to a fibromyalgia treatment program at a tertiary care center. Mayo Clin Proc 2005;80:55–60CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schachter, SC Herbs and botanicals. In: Rho, JM, Sankar, R, Strafstrom, CE (eds.) Epilepsy: Mechanisms, Models, and Translational Perspectives. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. 2010:403–411Google Scholar
Lai, CW, Huang, X, Lai, YHC, et al. A survey of public awareness, understanding and attitudes toward epilepsy in Henan Province, China. Epilepsia 1990;31:182–187CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hong, Z, Qu, B, Wu, X-T, et al. Economic burden of epilepsy in a developing country: a retrospective cost analysis in China. Epilepsia 2009;50:2192–2198CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hu, J, Si, Y, Zhou, D, et al. Prevalence and treatment gap of active convulsive epilepsy: a large community-based survey in rural West China. Seizure 2014;23:333–337CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Danesi, MA, Adetunji, JB. Use of alternative medicine by patients with epilepsy: a survey of 265 epileptic patients in a developing country. Epilepsia 1994;35:344–351CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Govindaraghavan, S, Sucher, NJ. Quality assessment of medicinal herbs and their extracts: criteria and prerequisites for consistent safety and efficacy of herbal medicines. Epilepsy Behav 2015;52(Part B):363–371CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Liu, FX, Salmon, JW. Herbal medicine regulation in China, Germany and the United States. Integr Med 2010;9:54–61Google Scholar
Blumenthal, M, Busse, WR. The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to Herbal Medicines: Developed by a Special Expert Committee of the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices. Austin, TX: American Botanical Council.1998.Google Scholar
Hoffman, FA. Botanicals as ‘new’ drugs: US development. Epilepsy Behav 2015;52(Part B):338–343CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ekstein, D. Issues and promise in clinical studies of botanicals with anticonvulsant potential. Epilepsy Behav 2015;52(Part B):329–332Google Scholar
Luciano, DJ, Spinella, M. Herbal treatment of epilepsy: phytotherapy. In: Devinsky, O, Schachter, S, Pacia, S (eds.) Complementary and Alternative Therapies for Epilepsy, New York: Demos Medical Publishing. 2005:143–155Google Scholar
Delgoda, R, Westlake, AC. Herbal interactions involving cytochrome p450 enzymes: a mini review. Toxicol Rev 2004;23:239–249CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Li, Q, Chen, X, He, L, Zhou, D. Traditional Chinese medicine for epilepsy. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2009;(3):CD006454Google ScholarPubMed
He, L, Wen, T, Yan, S, et al. Reevaluation of the effect of Dianxianning on seizure rate of refractory epilepsy as additive treatment in clinical practice. Front Med 2011;5:229–234Google Scholar
Maa, E, Figi, P. The case for medical marijuana in epilepsy. Epilepsia 2014;55:783–786Google Scholar
Porter, BE, Jacobson, C. Report of a parent survey of cannabidiol-enriched cannabis use in pediatric treatment-resistant epilepsy. Epilepsy Behav 2013;29:574–577CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hussain, SA, Zhou, R, Jacobson, C, et al. Perceived efficacy of cannabidiol-enriched cannabis extracts for treatment of pediatric epilepsy: a potential role for infantile spasms and Lennox–Gastaut syndrome. Epilepsy Behav 2015;47:138–141Google Scholar
Reddy, DS, Golub, V. The pharmacological basis of cannabis therapy for epilepsy. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 2016;357(1):45–55CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rosenberg, EC, Tsien, RW, Whalley, BJ, Devinsky, O. Cannabinoids and epilepsy. Neurotherapeutics 2015;12:747–768CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Devinsky, O, Cilio, MR, Cross, H, et al. Cannabidiol: pharmacology and potential role in epilepsy and other neuropsychiatric disorders. Epilepsia 2014;55:791–802Google Scholar
Gloss, D, Vickrey, B. Cannabinoids for epilepsy. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2014;(3):CD009270Google ScholarPubMed
Szaflarski, JP, Bebin, EM. Cannabis, cannabidiol, and epilepsy: from receptors to clinical response. Epilepsy Behav 2014;41:277–282Google Scholar
Thiele, EA, Marsh, E, French, JA, et al. Cannabidiol in patients with seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (GWPCARE4): a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 3 trial. Lancet 2018;391:1085–1096Google Scholar
Devinsky, O, Patel, AD, Cross, JH, et al. Effect of cannabidiol on drop seizures in the Lennox–Gastaut syndrome. N Engl J Med 2018;378:1888–1897CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Devinsky, O, Cross, JH, Laux, L, et al. Trial of cannabidiol for drug-resistant seizures in the Dravet syndrome. N Engl J Med 2017;376:2011–2020CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schachter, SC. Botanicals and herbs: a traditional approach to treating epilepsy. Neurotherapeutics 2009;6:415–420CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Elsas, SM. A model on how to obtain data from botanical practitioners. Epilepsy Behav 2015;52(Part B):333–337Google Scholar
Schachter, SC. Herbal therapies for epilepsy. In: Schwartzkroin, PA (ed.) Encyclopedia of Basic Epilepsy Research. Oxford: Academic Press.2009:1450–1454Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×