Misery of insufficient treatment guidelines in post‐traumatic epilepsy

Abstract

Two dogs were presented after traumatic brain injury (TBI): a Jack Russell Terrier (JRT) kicked by a horse and a Magyar Vizsla (MV) hit by train. Both dogs developed seizures immediately after trauma and were treated successfully with antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) for 1 month (JRT) with imepitoin and for half a year (MV) with phenobarbital. After discontinuing the antiepileptic therapy, both dogs developed seizures again resulting in death of the JRT in status epilepticus. The MV was treated again with AEDs and continued to have cluster seizures every 2 weeks. In conclusion, it can be recommended to treat dogs with immediate seizures continuously after TBI with AEDs, if no life-threatening adverse events occur.