Pharmacologic Considerations in the Treatment of Repetitive or Prolonged Seizures

Abstract

Seizure emergencies are relatively common; however, in-hospital emergency care often is delayed by a variety of factors. Home-based treatment is effective at interrupting prolonged or repetitive seizures, but this option is underused despite its wide availability. The choice of agent used to treat seizure emergencies will depend chiefly on differences among the properties of the available drugs, particularly with regard to route of administration, lipid solubility, formulation characteristics, and the relative size of the absorptive surface area. These factors also can play a part in the decision to use one route of administration over another. Intravenous administration is the fastest and most reliable method of drug delivery, but alternative methods of drug delivery include oral, intramuscular, buccal, nasal, and rectal routes.