Monthly Archives: July 2009

New Epilepsy Drug – Vimpat

Finally, after 6 months of waiting, we were able to see a new neurologist and she suggested that we try Tasya on a new drug called Vimpat®. We were desperately trying to get our daughter off of Topamax® as it was hurting her cognitively and she was beginning to have breakthrough seizures again.

So one day on it shouldn’t make much of a difference but something happened that hasn’t occurred ever before. Tasya was about to have a seizure upon waking (her most common type) but it didn’t happen. I rushed to the room hearing the cry that she has right before a seizure and there she was, clear eyed and talkative. She told both my wife and I how different she felt and that she felt clearer and sharper than before.

Vimpat’s® mode of action supposedly is to stop a seizure by changing the sodium channel slowly as opposed to older drugs which did it very quickly. Side-effects seem to be less than other drugs which try to dampen the entire brain like Topamax®.

While we are in the early stages of trying this med out on Tasya and the fact that it is only approved for people over the age of 17, we remain hopeful but not fully convinced of Vimpat’s® efficacy. Still, the fact that Tasya showed such a quick positive reaction makes us feel that maybe, just maybe, we have the answer to help stop her seizure activity completely.

Two New Podcast Series

Now that my creative juices are strating to flow, I’ve started two new series of podcasts with my Let’s Talk Real Health podcast. The first one is on amino acids starting with my favorite, Glycine. The second coming out tomorrow is on the question I get asked more often than any other which is “What test should I run if my patient has _______”? I will be answering that question for 21 different health disorders.

Hope you enjoy them and have a great Independence Day weekend.