Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Differences between the concentrations of antiepileptic drugs in normal and pathological human brain

  • Originals
  • Published:
European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Summary

The concentrations of antiepileptic drugs in histologically normal and pathological brain tissues were investigated in 6 patients submitted to surgery. No significant difference for phenobarbital and phenytoin was found between normal and scar tissue, whereas there was a trend to concentration in tumour tissue (meningioma and glioma) of phenobarbital, phenytoin and carbamazepine. Alteration in the vascular supply and pathological changes at cellular and subcellular levels could be responsible for the differences in the distribution of the drugs. The possible clinical relevance of the preferential concentration of the drugs in tumour tissue is discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Baruzzi A, Cabrini GP, Gerna M, Sironi VA, Morselli PL (1977) Anticonvulsant plasma levels monitoring in epileptic patients undergoing stereo-EEG. In: Gardner-Thorpe C, Janz D, Meinardi H, Pippenger CE (eds) Antiepileptic drug monitoring. Pitman Medical, London, pp 317–334

    Google Scholar 

  2. Cabrini GP, Ettorre G, Marossero F, Miserocchi G, Ravagnati L (1975) Surgery of epilepsy: some indications for SEEG study. J Neurosurg Sci 19: 95–104

    Google Scholar 

  3. Friis ML, Christiansen J (1978) Carbamazepine, carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide, and phenytoin concentrations in brain tissue of epileptic children. Acta Neurol Scand 58: 104–108

    Google Scholar 

  4. Friis ML, Christiansen J, Hvidberg EF (1978) Brain concentrations of carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide in epileptic patients. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 14: 47–51

    Google Scholar 

  5. Houghton GW, Richens A, Toseland PA, Davidson S, Falconer MA (1975) Brain concentrations of phenytoin, phenobarbitone and primidone in epileptic patients. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 9: 73–78

    Google Scholar 

  6. Kornblith PL, Callahan LV, Caswell PA (1978) Growth-inhibitory effects of diphenylhydantoin on human brain tumor cells in culture. Neurosurgery 2: 122–127

    Google Scholar 

  7. McGee J (1970) Rapid determination of diphenylhydantoin in blood plasma by gas-liquid chromatography. Anal Chem 42: 421–422

    Google Scholar 

  8. Morselli PL, Biandrate P, Frigerio A, Gerna M, Tognoni G (1973) Gas chromatographic determination of carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide in human body fluids. In: Meyer JWA, Meinardi H, Gardner-Thorpe C, Van der Kleijn C (eds) Methods of analysis of antiepileptic drugs. Excerpta Medica, Amsterdam, pp 169–175

    Google Scholar 

  9. Morselli PL, Baruzzi A, Gerna M, Bossi L, Porta M (1977) Carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide concentrations in human brain. Br J Clin Pharmacol 4: 535–540

    Google Scholar 

  10. Munari C, Ruvei V, Talairach J, Sanjuan E, Bancaud J, Morselli PL (1978) AED concentrations in discrete brain areas of epileptic patients undergoing surgical intervention. Preliminary observations, Epilepsy International Symposium, September 10–14, Vancouver, Canada, p24 (Abstract)

  11. Pagni CA, Marossero F, Infuso L, Ettorre G, Cabrini GP (1966) La stereo-elettroencefalografia nella diagnostica delle epilessie non tumorali. Min Neurochir 10: 145–201

    Google Scholar 

  12. Rapport RL II, Harris AB, Friel PN, Ojemann GA (1975) Human epileptic brain. Na, K, ATPase activity and phenytoin concentrations. Arch Neurol 32: 549–554

    Google Scholar 

  13. Rosemblum I, Stein AA (1963) Preferential distribution of diphenylhydantoin in primary human brain tumors. Biochem Pharmacol 12: 1453–1454

    Google Scholar 

  14. Sherwin AL, Eisen AA, Sikolowski CD (1973) Anticonvulsant drugs in human epileptogenic brain. Correlation of phenobarbital and diphenylhydantoin levels with plasma. Arch Neurol 29: 73–77

    Google Scholar 

  15. Sherwin AL, Sokolowski CD (1975) Phenytoin and phenobarbitone levels in human brain and cerebrospinal fluids. In: Schneider H, Janz D, Gardner-Thorpe C, Meinardi H, Sherwin AL (eds) Clinical pharmacology of antiepileptic drugs. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York, pp 274–280

    Google Scholar 

  16. Sherwin AL, Harvey CD, Leppik IE (1977) Antiepileptic drugs in human cerebral cortex: clinical relevance of cortex-plasma ratios. In: Penry JK (ed) Epilepsy: 8th International Symposium. Raven Press, New York, pp 103–108

    Google Scholar 

  17. Sironi VA, Franzini A, Ravagnati L, Marossero F (1979) Interictal acute psychoses in temporal lobe epilepsy during with-drawal of anticonvulsant therapy. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 42: 724–730

    Google Scholar 

  18. Sironi VA, Cabrini GP, Porro MG, Ravagnati L, Marossero F (1980) Antiepileptic drug distribution in cerebral cortex, Ammon's horn and amygdala in man. J Neurosurg 52: 686–692

    Google Scholar 

  19. Talairach J, Bancaud J, Szikla G, Bonis A, Geier S, Vendrenne C (1974) Approche nouvelle de la neurochirurgie de l'epilepsie. Methodologique stéréotaxique et resultats thérapeutique. Neurochirurgie 20 [Suppl]: 1–240

    Google Scholar 

  20. Vajda F, Williams FM, Davidson S, Falconer MA, Breckenridge A (1974) Human brain, cerebrospinal fluid, and plasma concentrations of diphenylhydantoin and phenobarbital. Clin Pharmacol Ther 15: 597–603

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Neurosurgery, School of Medicine, University of Milan, Milan, Italy

    V. A. Sironi, L. Ravagnati, G. Ettorre, G. P. Cabrini & F. Marossero

Authors
  1. V. A. Sironi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. L. Ravagnati
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. G. Ettorre
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. G. P. Cabrini
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. F. Marossero
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Sironi, V.A., Ravagnati, L., Ettorre, G. et al. Differences between the concentrations of antiepileptic drugs in normal and pathological human brain. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 22, 447–449 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00542551

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00542551

Key words

Search

Navigation