Abstract
We studied the optimal dose in 122 cases who were controlled with epileptic seizure 2 years or more with carbamazepine (CBZ) mono therapy. The age of epilepsy onset ranged from 1 to 74 years old, the mean age was 23.5±18.8 years old, and the median age was 21 years old. The dose range CBZ was 100mg/day to 1,000mg/day with a, mean dose of 412.1±203.3mg/day, and median dose was 400mg/day. Only 4 cases have doses beyond 800mg/day. There was a significant negative correlation between dose and age of epilepsy onset. The number of patients with complex partial seizure (CPS) only was 29 and the most common. The cases who were effective with CBZ mono therapy were controlled by smaller doses. The cases who were not controlled with doses beyond 800mg/day must be switched from CBZ to other antiepileptic drugs (AED), added on new AED and be examined as to whether surgery is appropriate or not.
