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Will seizure control improve by switching from the modified Atkins diet to the traditional ketogenic diet?
Author(s) -
Kossoff Eric H.,
Bosarge Jennifer L.,
Miranda Maria J.,
WiemerKruel Adelheid,
Kang Hoon Chul,
Kim Heung Dong
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
epilepsia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.687
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1528-1167
pISSN - 0013-9580
DOI - 10.1111/j.1528-1167.2010.02774.x
Subject(s) - ketogenic diet , epilepsy , etiology , pediatrics , incidence (geometry) , medicine , dietary therapy , psychiatry , physics , optics
Summary It has been reported that children can maintain seizure control when the ketogenic diet (KD) is transitioned to the less‐restrictive modified Atkins diet (MAD). What is unknown, however, is the likelihood of additional seizure control from a switch from the MAD to the KD. Retrospective information was obtained from 27 patients who made this dietary change from four different institutions. Ten (37%) patients had ≥10% additional seizure reduction with the KD over the MAD, of which five became seizure‐free. The five children who did not improve on the MAD failed to improve when transitioned to the KD. A higher incidence of improvement with the KD occurred for those with myoclonic–astatic epilepsy (70% vs. 12% for all other etiologies, p = 0.004), including all who became seizure‐free. These results suggest that the KD probably represents a “higher dose” of dietary therapy than the MAD, which may particularly benefit those with myoclonic–astatic epilepsy.