Reassessing the adverse event profiles of levetiracetam and brivaracetam: a systematic review and meta-analysis - PubMed
4 hours ago
- #Safety profile
- #Anticonvulsants
- #Epilepsy
- Systematic review and meta-analysis comparing adverse event (AE) profiles of levetiracetam (LEV) and brivaracetam (BRV).
- Analyzed 96 RCTs involving 7,145 patients on LEV and 2,549 on BRV.
- Most common AEs: headache, somnolence, dizziness, and fatigue.
- LEV associated with higher rates of psychiatric AEs like irritability and aggression.
- Meta-analysis showed increased somnolence with both LEV (OR 1.80) and BRV (OR 1.86).
- LEV linked to irritability (OR 2.55) and asthenia (OR 1.71); BRV linked to dizziness (OR 1.75) and fatigue (OR 2.14).
- No significant differences in AE risk between LEV and BRV in indirect comparisons.
- Conclusion: LEV and BRV have comparable safety profiles, with LEV showing higher descriptive rates of some psychiatric AEs.
- Larger head-to-head trials needed for definitive comparative evidence.