Marisa Wexler, MS,  senior science writer—

Targeting a heart protein called NaV1.6 may help prevent sudden death in adults with Dravet syndrome, a study in mice suggests. The study, “Cardiac-Specific Deletion of Scn8a Mitigates Dravet Syndrome-Associated Sudden Death in Adults,” was published in JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology. Dravet syndrome is caused by…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has lifted its partial clinical hold on higher doses of zorevunersen, an experimental treatment for Dravet syndrome currently being tested in Phase 1/2 trials. The FDA placed the hold based on preclinical data in 2020, limiting dosing of zorevunersen in studies taking…

Parents of children with Dravet syndrome in Spain say they don’t get enough support to help meet the emotional and economic challenges of the disease, a study found. “The findings of this study underscore the need for policy reforms that specifically address the challenges faced not only by individuals…

Although high-quality data are lacking, available evidence suggests that a procedure called vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) — which targets a large nerve connecting the brain and the gut — can help to reduce seizure frequency in some people with Dravet syndrome. That’s according to a new study titled…

Having a child with Dravet syndrome affects the whole family, and it’s common for parents to feel burnt out and sleep-deprived and for siblings to feel unseen, a study reported. Clinicians should be proactive about offering information about support networks for families affected by Dravet syndrome, the study’s authors…

Diacomit (stiripentol) may be more effective than other available Dravet syndrome treatments at reducing the frequency of seizures, according to an analysis of data from multiple clinical trials. The therapy “can be recommended as the first choice among the included drug regimens for reducing seizures in [Dravet] patients,”…

Treatment with the experimental oral therapy bexicaserin led to sustained reductions in seizure frequency for children with Dravet syndrome and other types of developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs), according to new data from the PACIFIC Phase 1/2a clinical trial and its open-label extension study. The findings were announced by…

A Phase 3 clinical trial testing soticlestat in people with Dravet syndrome showed that patients given soticlestat tended to have fewer seizures than those given a placebo, but the difference did not quite reach statistical significance, so the study missed its main goal. While the treatment didn’t meet…

Avata Biosciences is gearing up for a Phase 3 clinical trial to test SAP-021, the company’s oral capsule formulation of cannabidiol — commonly abbreviated as CBD — that’s being developed as an alternative to Epidiolex, an oil-based cannabidiol solution that’s approved to reduce seizure frequency in people with…

Among recent treatments to reduce the risk of seizures in people with Dravet syndrome, Fintepla (fenfluramine) appears to be the most potent, according to a new analysis. “In [Dravet syndrome], [Fintepla] provided significantly greater efficacy compared with other [anti-seizure medications], and it was generally well tolerated,” researchers wrote…