News

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted rare pediatric disease designation to relutrigine, a treatment candidate for Dravet syndrome that’s being developed by Praxis Precision Medicines. The therapy aims to reduce seizures in children with epileptic disorders such as Dravet. “We are thrilled to have been…

Health-related quality of life is low for parents of children with Dravet syndrome relative to the general public in Sweden, with higher levels of anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges, along with poorer sleep, a study found. Higher levels of anxiety were reported among these women than among…

In a mouse model study of Dravet syndrome, males were seen to be more vulnerable to abnormal heartbeats and heart deficits in energy-producing mitochondria than female mice. These findings suggest that male Dravet patients may be particularly vulnerable to sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP), a fatal seizure…

Children with genetic causes of epilepsy, including Dravet syndrome, were more than five times more likely to have fewer seizures after following a ketogenic diet, known as keto, for one year, according to a new study. Across all types of hard-to-treat epilepsy, nearly three-quarters of patients responded to…

Lundbeck agreed to acquire the company developing bexicaserin, an investigational treatment for seizures associated with Dravet syndrome and other developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs). Lundbeck will buy Longboard Pharmaceuticals for $60 a share in cash, or a total of about $2.6 billion, the companies announced. “Bexicaserin…

Add-on treatment with Diacomit (stiripentol) was associated with reductions in the number of episodes of status epilepticus (SE), periods of prolonged seizure activity, in people with Dravet syndrome and other types of epilepsy, a review study found. Evidence also suggested that Diacomit may be able to stop…

Two-thirds of 24 children and young adults with Dravet syndrome experienced clinically meaningful declines in seizure frequency after adding Fintepla (fenfluramine) to their treatment regimen, according to a real-world Danish analysis. Fintepla’s use also was associated with reductions in healthcare utilization and the use of other anti-seizure medications.

Longboard Pharmaceuticals has launched a Phase 3 clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of bexicaserin, its investigational treatment for seizures associated with Dravet syndrome and other forms of developmental and epileptic encephalopathies, known as DEEs. The worldwide study, dubbed DEEp SEA, expects to enroll about 160…

Stoke Therapeutics’ zorevunersen, a treatment that addresses the genetic cause of Dravet syndrome, continues to reduce the frequency of seizures in children and adolescents who are taking part in Phase 1/2 clinical studies in the U.S. and the U.K., while also leading to improvements in cognition and behavior.

Nine months of treatment with bexicaserin (LP352), an investigational oral small molecule from Longboard Pharmaceuticals, more than halved the frequency of motor seizures in adults and adolescents with Dravet syndrome or other forms of developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEE). That’s according to new interim data from the…