Editing Anticonvulsant (section)

== Drugs ==
In the following list, the dates in parentheses are the earliest approved use of the drug.

=== Aldehydes ===
{{main|Aldehyde}}
* [[Paraldehyde]] (1882). One of the earliest anticonvulsants. It is still used to treat [[status epilepticus]], particularly where there are no [[resuscitation]] facilities.<ref>Browne TR. Paraldehyde, chlormethiazole, and lidocaine for treatment of status epilepticus. In: Delgado-Escueta AV, Wasterlain CG, Treiman DM, Porter RJ, eds. Status Epilepticus. Mechanisms of Brain Damage and Treatment (Advances in Neurology, Vol 34). New York, Raven Press 1983: 509–517</ref><ref>{{cite journal | author = Ramsay RE | year = 1989 | title = Pharmacokinetics and clinical use of parenteral phenytoin, phenobarbital, and paraldehyde | journal = Epilepsia | volume = 30 | issue = Suppl 2| pages = S1–S3 | doi = 10.1111/j.1528-1157.1989.tb05818.x | pmid = 2767008 | s2cid = 44798815 }}</ref>

=== Aromatic allylic alcohols ===
* [[Stiripentol]] (2007). Indicated for the treatment of [[severe myoclonic epilepsy of infancy|Dravet syndrome]].<ref name="pmid23018548">{{cite journal|last=Plosker|first=GL|title=Stiripentol: in severe myoclonic epilepsy of infancy (dravet syndrome)|journal=CNS Drugs|date=November 2012|volume=26|issue=11|pages=993–1001|pmid=23018548|doi=10.1007/s40263-012-0004-3|s2cid=42911844 }}</ref><ref name="EMA">{{cite web|title=Public summary of positive opinion for orpphan opinion for orphan designation of stiripentol for the treatment of severe myoclonic epilepsy in infancy|url=http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Orphan_designation/2009/10/WC500005711.pdf|publisher=European Medicines Agency|access-date=19 May 2013|date=30 July 2007|quote=Doc.Ref.: EMEA/COMP/269/04|archive-date=17 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131217120247/http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Orphan_designation/2009/10/WC500005711.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Diacomit EPAR" /><ref name="Diacomit FDA label">{{cite web | title=Diacomit- stiripentol capsule Diacomit- stiripentol powder, for suspension | website=DailyMed | date=15 May 2020 | url=https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=58304ba8-9779-4658-811e-94ffe08c3f16#section-1 | access-date=8 November 2020 | archive-date=6 August 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806164938/https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=58304ba8-9779-4658-811e-94ffe08c3f16#section-1 | url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Barbiturates ===
{{main|Barbiturate}}
[[Barbiturate]]s are [[medication|drugs]] that act as [[central nervous system]] (CNS) [[depressant]]s, and by virtue of this they produce a wide spectrum of effects, from mild [[sedation]] to [[anesthesia]]. The following are [[ATC code N03|classified]] as anticonvulsants:<ref>Suddock JT, Kent KJ, Cain MD. Barbiturate Toxicity. 2023 Apr 12. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023 Jan–. PMID 29763050.( 26 / August / 2023 )</ref>
* [[Phenobarbital]] (1912). See also the related drug [[primidone]].
* [[Methylphenobarbital]] (1935). Known as mephobarbital in the US. No longer marketed in the UK.
* [[Barbexaclone]] (1982). Only available in some European countries.

=== Benzodiazepines ===
{{main|Benzodiazepine}}
The benzodiazepines are a class of [[medication|drugs]] with [[hypnotic]], [[anxiolytic]], anticonvulsive, [[amnesia|amnestic]] and [[muscle relaxant]] properties. Benzodiazepines act as a central nervous system depressant. The relative strength of each of these properties in any given benzodiazepine varies greatly and influences the indications for which it is prescribed. Long-term use can be problematic due to the development of [[drug tolerance|tolerance]] to the anticonvulsant effects and [[Substance use disorder|dependency]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Browne TR |date=May 1976 |title=Clonazepam. A review of a new anticonvulsant drug |volume=33 |issue=5 |pages=326–32 |pmid=817697 |journal=Arch Neurol |doi=10.1001/archneur.1976.00500050012003}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Isojärvi |first=JI |author2=Tokola RA |date=December 1998 |title=Benzodiazepines in the treatment of epilepsy in people with intellectual disability |journal=J Intellect Disabil Res |volume=42 |issue=1 |pages=80–92 |pmid=10030438}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |journal=Epilepsia |date=May–Jun 1986 |volume=27 |issue=3 |pages=276–85 |title=Nonconvulsive status epilepticus|last2=Svanborg |first2=E |last3=Wedlund |first3=JE |pmid=3698940 |last1=Tomson |first1=T |doi=10.1111/j.1528-1157.1986.tb03540.x|s2cid=26694857 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Djurić |first=M |author2=Marjanović B |author3=Zamurović D  |date=May–Jun 2001 |title=[West syndrome--new therapeutic approach] |journal=Srp Arh Celok Lek |volume=129 |issue=1 |pages=72–7 |pmid=15637997}}</ref> Of many drugs in this class, only a few are used to treat epilepsy:
* [[Clobazam]] (1979). Notably, used on a short-term basis around menstruation in women with [[catamenial epilepsy]].
* [[Clonazepam]] (1974).
* [[Clorazepate]] (1972).

The following benzodiazepines are used to treat [[status epilepticus]]:
* [[Diazepam]] (1963). Can be given rectally by trained care-givers.
* [[Midazolam]] (N/A). Increasingly being used as an alternative to diazepam. This water-soluble drug is squirted into the side of the mouth but not swallowed. It is rapidly absorbed by the [[buccal mucosa]].
* [[Lorazepam]] (1972). Given by injection in hospital.

[[Nitrazepam]], [[temazepam]], and especially [[nimetazepam]] are powerful anticonvulsant agents, however their use is rare due to an increased incidence of side effects and strong [[sedative]] and motor-impairing properties.

=== Bromides ===
{{main|Bromide}}
* [[Potassium bromide]] (1857). The earliest effective treatment for epilepsy. There would not be a better drug until phenobarbital in 1912. It is still used as an anticonvulsant for dogs and cats but is no longer used in humans.

=== Carbamates ===
{{main|Carbamate}}
* [[Felbamate]] (1993). This effective anticonvulsant has had its usage severely restricted due to rare but life-threatening side effects.<ref name="Sankar">{{cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=47fckyBY2XwC&q=felbamate+side+effects+restrictions&pg=RA1-PA100 |title=Pediatric epilepsy: diagnosis and therapy |publisher=Demos Medical Publishing |isbn=978-1-933864-16-7 |editor-last=Bourgeois |editor-first=Blaise F. |edition=3rd |location=New York |publication-date=2007-12-16 |editor-last2=Dodson |editor-first2=Edwin |editor-last3=Nordli |editor-first3=Douglas R. Jr |editor-last4=Pellock |editor-first4=John M. |editor-last5=Sankar |editor-first5=Raman}}</ref><ref name="pmid10331676">{{cite journal|last=French|first=J|author2=Smith, M|author3=Faught, E|author4=Brown, L|title=Practice advisory: The use of felbamate in the treatment of patients with intractable epilepsy: report of the Quality Standards Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Epilepsy Society|journal=Neurology|date=12 May 1999|volume=52|issue=8|pages=1540–5|pmid=10331676|doi=10.1212/WNL.52.8.1540|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="MedlinePlus Felbamate">{{cite web|title=Felbamate|url=https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a606011.html|publisher=MedlinePlus : U.S. National Library of Medicine|access-date=19 May 2013|archive-date=20 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130520184744/http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a606011.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Cenobamate]] (2019).

=== Carboxamides ===
[[File:Carbamazepine 3D.png|thumb|right|Carbamazepine]]
{{main|Carboxamide}}
The following are carboxamides:
* [[Carbamazepine]] (1963). A popular anticonvulsant that is available in generic formulations.
* [[Oxcarbazepine]] (1990). A derivative of carbamazepine that has similar efficacy and is better tolerated and is also available generically.
* [[Eslicarbazepine acetate]] (2009).
* Photoswitchable analogues of carbamazepine (2024) are research compounds developed to control its pharmacological activity locally and on demand using light, with the purpose to reduce adverse systemic effects.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Camerin |first1=Luisa |last2=Maleeva |first2=Galyna |last3=Gomila-Juaneda |first3=Alexandre |last4=Suárez-Pereira |first4=Irene |last5=Matera |first5=Carlo |last6=Prischich |first6=Davia |last7=Opar |first7=Ekin |last8=Riefolo |first8=Fabio |last9=Berrocoso |first9=Esther |last10=Gorostiza |first10=Pau |date=2024-06-18 |title=Photoswitchable carbamazepine analogs for non-invasive neuroinhibition in vivo |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/anie.202403636 |journal=Angewandte Chemie International Edition |language=en |doi=10.1002/anie.202403636 |issn=1433-7851|doi-access=free |hdl=2445/215169 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> One of these compounds (carbadiazocine, based on a bridged [[azobenzene]]) has been shown to produce analgesia with noninvasive illumination in a rat model of [[neuropathic pain]].

=== Fatty acids ===
{{main|Fatty acid}}
The following are fatty-acids:
* The [[valproic acid|valproates]] — [[valproic acid]], [[sodium valproate]], and [[divalproex sodium]] (1967).
* [[Vigabatrin]] (1989).
* [[Progabide]] (1987).
* [[Tiagabine]] (1996).

''Vigabatrin and progabide are also analogs of GABA.''

=== Fructose derivatives ===
{{main|Fructose}}
* [[Topiramate]] (1995).

=== Gabapentinoids ===
{{main|Gabapentinoid}}
<div class="skin-invert-image">
{{multiple image
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| image1            = Phenibut and analogues.png
| alt1              = GABA analogues
| caption1          = [[GABA]] analogues
| image2            = Voltage gated calcium channel.jpg
| alt2              = Binding sites of [[pregabalin]] and the non-gabapentenoid [[ziconotide]] to the voltage-gated calcium channel complex.
| caption2          = [[Voltage-gated calcium channel]]
}}
</div>
Gabapentinoids are used in [[epilepsy]], [[neuropathic pain]], [[fibromyalgia]], [[restless leg syndrome]], [[opioid withdrawal]] and [[generalized anxiety disorder]] (GAD). Gabapentinoids block [[voltage-gated calcium channel]]s, mainly the [[N-type calcium channel|N-Type]], and [[P-type calcium channel|P/Q]]-type calcium channels. The following are gabapentinoids:
* [[Pregabalin]] (2004)
* [[Mirogabalin]] (2019) (Japan only)
* [[Gabapentin]] (1993)
* [[Gabapentin enacarbil]] (Horizant) (2011)
* [[Gabapentin extended release]] (Gralise) (1996)

Gabapentinoids are analogs of GABA, but they do not act on GABA receptors. They have analgesic, anticonvulsant, and anxiolytic effects.

=== Hydantoins ===
{{main|Hydantoin}}
The following are hydantoins:
* [[Ethotoin]] (1957).
* [[Phenytoin]] (1938).
* [[Mephenytoin]].
* [[Fosphenytoin]] (1996).

=== Oxazolidinediones ===
{{main|2,4-Oxazolidinedione}}
The following are oxazolidinediones:
* [[Paramethadione]].
* [[Trimethadione]] (1946).
* [[Ethadione]].

=== Propionates ===
{{main|Propionate}}
* [[Beclamide]].

=== Pyrimidinediones ===
{{main|Pyrimidinedione}}
* [[Primidone]] (1952).

=== Pyrrolidines ===
{{main|Pyrrolidine}}
* [[Brivaracetam]] (2016).
* [[Etiracetam]].
* [[Levetiracetam]] (1999).
* [[Seletracetam]].

=== Succinimides ===
{{main|Succinimide}}
The following are succinimides:
* [[Ethosuximide]] (1955).
* [[Phensuximide]].
* [[Mesuximide]].

=== Sulfonamides ===
{{main|Sulfonamide (medicine)}}
* [[Acetazolamide]] (1953).
* [[Sultiame]].
* [[Methazolamide]].
* [[Zonisamide]] (2000).

=== Triazines ===
{{main|Triazine}}
* [[Lamotrigine]] (1990).

=== Ureas ===
{{main|Urea}}
* [[Pheneturide]].
* [[Phenacemide]].

=== Valproylamides ===
{{main|Amide}}
* [[Valpromide]].
* [[Valnoctamide]].

=== Other ===
* [[Perampanel]].
* [[Stiripentol]].<ref name="Diacomit EPAR">{{cite web | title=Diacomit EPAR | website=European Medicines Agency | url=https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/diacomit | access-date=8 November 2020 | archive-date=12 November 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112022416/https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/diacomit | url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Pyridoxine]] (1939).