• David Neubauer, Mirjana Perković Benedik, and Damjan Osredkar.
• Department of Child, Adolescent and Developmental Neurology, University Children's Hospital, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Slovenia.
• Epilepsy Behav. 2018 Apr 1; 81: 79-85.

PurposeRefractory epilepsies in children present a major burden for patients and their families. Cannabidiol (CBD) has been suggested as a potential treatment for refractory epilepsies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of add-on therapy with CBD for the treatment of refractory childhood epilepsies.MethodPatients with childhood-onset refractory epilepsy, treated at the tertiary epilepsy center of the University Children's Hospital Ljubljana, Slovenia, were included in the study. Add-on therapy with CBD was initiated once the child's epilepsy was categorized as pharmacoresistant to other antiepileptic drugs/therapies. The dosage of CBD was gradually increased to at least 8mg/kg/day. The effect of CBD treatment was evaluated by the reduction in seizure burden and presence of side effects (positive and negative). Serial electroencephalography was performed in some children.ResultsSixty-six patients were included in the analysis. Thirty-two (48.5%) patients had a more than 50% improvement regarding seizure burden, 14 of whom (21.2%) became seizure-free. None of the patients reported worsening of seizure frequency, but CBD had no effect in 15 (22.7%) patients. Some patients reported less vigorous seizures, shorter duration of seizures, shorter time to recovery, and other positive side effects of CBD treatment. Adverse effects were reported in 5/66 children.ConclusionsIn our cohort of patients, CBD was found to have potential benefits as add-on therapy for refractory childhood epilepsies, mainly by reducing seizure burden.Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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