Abstract
Objective: To assess the effect of continuous valproate monotherapy (VPA) on body mass index (BMI), serum leptin, malondialdehyde (MDA) and lipid profile in male epileptic children and adult patients in comparison to healthy male controls.
Subjects, materials and methods: A case-control study design was adopted. Samples from 44 male patients (22 less than 18 years old, and 22 over than 18 years old), with primary generalized epilepsy, on continuous VPA monotherapy, for at least six months before participation in the study, were collected over the period from October 2009 to March 2010. Forty-four apparently healthy male volunteers (22 less than 18 years old, and 22 over than 18 years old) without previous history of epilepsy were recruited as controls. Serum levels of leptin, and lipid profile indices were estimated using commercially available kits and a manually prepared reagent for MDA assay. (BMI) was calculated as weight in kilograms divided by the squared height in meters.
Results: The results revealed that epileptic children and epileptic adults receiving continuous VPA monotherapy had a significantly higher BMI (p
