@article{GuzmánCarreras:8590,
      author        = "Guzmán Carreras, Beira and Abad Alegría, Francisco",
      title         = "{Mecanismo de acción del levetiracetam: una aproximación
                       a partir de sus efectos en el EEG}",
      year          = "2012",
      note          = "Objectives: to identify the frequency of appearance of
                       fast rhythms in the EEG in patients using levetiracetam
                       (LEV), observe potential drug interaction of LEV with
                       benzodiazepines and barbiturates, which provide fast
                       rhythms on EEG and reach an approximation of the mechanism
                       of action LEV. Material and methods: a longitudinal cohort
                       study in the time between February 2011 and May 2012,
                       patients attending the laboratory of Clinical
                       Neurophysiology. We collected a total of 141 patients,
                       mostly from the Neurology and Pediatrics, EEGs were
                       performed with the inclusion criteria that they used the
                       drug LEV as usual or for 24 hours before the time of
                       examination. Manually analyzed EEGs each area by the
                       physicians taking into account parameters of interest to
                       assess the earlier rapid pace. Results: mean age was 53
                       years, of whom 70 patients (49.6%) had rapid rates. Only 16
                       patients used benzodiazepines (BZPs), most females.
                       Considering only patients who presented as finding a
                       frequency above 14 Hz greater than could say that prevails
                       to a greater extent the rise in Hz with the use of BZP with
                       the study drug and no relation to the type of epilepsy and
                       the amount of fast rhythm in patients presented.
                       Conclusion: we observed that like the BZPs and
                       barbiturates, the LEV provides fast rhythms are not as
                       quick in the BZPs frequencies and barbiturates, as in our
                       previous study, the maximum frequency was 26Hz and was in a
                       patient LEV concurrently with BZP use, so that high
                       frequency could be due to BZP and not the LEV. We conclude
                       that according to the performance of the LEV that by some
                       mechanism as yet unknown experimentally, the LEV could
                       stimulate areas in the reticular formation and this in turn
                       provides stimulus to thalamus and cortex, resulting in high
                       frequency EEG rhythm and low voltage, similar to those
                       provided in wakefulness.",
}