Snapshot A 6-year-old boy presents with brief periods of unresponsiveness. He is accompanied by his mother, who states that these episodes last approximately 15 seconds and occur multiple times a day. Associated symptoms include perioral automatisms. The mother has noticed that in moments of anger or hyperventilation, the patient's symptoms surface. Physical examination is completely normal. EEG shows spike and wave pattern at 3 Hz. The boy is started on ethosuximide. (Absence seizures) General Properties of Anticonvulsants Antiepileptic drugs (AED) can be separated by mechanism of action (MOA) login to view 3 more bullets Choice of AED is dependent on seizure type, patient, and side-effect profile Affecting Voltage-Gated Na+ Channels Phenytoin login to view 25 more bullets Carbamazepine login to view 22 more bullets Lamotrigine login to view 8 more bullets Affecting Calcium Channels Ethosuximide login to view 9 more bullets Affecting GABA Activity Phenobarbital login to view 10 more bullets Benzodiazepines login to view 7 more bullets Tiagabine login to view 4 more bullets Vigabatrin login to view 4 more bullets Multiple Mechanism of Action Valproic acid login to view 17 more bullets Topiramate login to view 11 more bullets Other Levetiracetam login to view 5 more bullets Gabepentin login to view 10 more bullets