Evidence map›Paper›PMID 22164192›Full record

ArticleTherapeutic advances in neurological disorders2011

The cognitive impact of antiepileptic drugs.

Clare M Eddy, Hugh E Rickards, Andrea E Cavanna

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Therapeutic advances in neurological disorders, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 149 papers, 8 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
149citing papers in PubMed, 8 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

149 citing papers in PubMed, 8 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Self- and informant-reported cognitive concerns associated with primary brain tumour: systematic review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025
    Pooled it
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  9. Trial
  10. Topiramate impairs cognitive function in methadone-maintained individuals with concurrent cocaine dependence.Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors · 2015
    Trial
  11. Health-related quality of life improvement via telemedicine for epilepsy: printed versus SMS-based education intervention.Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation · 2013
    Trial
  12. Article
  13. Review
  14. Holistic management of epilepsy in adults with intellectual development disorders.Epileptic disorders : international epilepsy journal with videotape · 2026
    Article
  15. Observational
  16. Article
  17. Neuropsychological assessment in adult epilepsy: rationale, test selection, and clinical integration across non-surgical care in Italian patients.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2026
    Review
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article

89 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Clare M Eddy
Hugh E Rickards
Andrea E Cavanna

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Effective treatment of epilepsy depends on medication compliance across a lifetime, and studies indicate that drug tolerability is a significant limiting factor in medication maintenance. Available antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) have the potential to exert detrimental effects on cognitive function and therefore compromise patient wellbeing. On the other hand, some agents may serve to enhance cognitive function. In this review paper, we highlight the range of effects on cognition linked to a variety of newer and older AEDs, encompassing key alterations in both specific executive abilities and broader neuropsychological functions. Importantly, the data reviewed suggest that the effects exerted by an AED could vary depending on both patient characteristics and drug-related variables. However, there are considerable difficulties in evaluating the available evidence. Many studies have failed to investigate the influence of patient and treatment variables on cognitive functioning. Other difficulties include variation across studies in relation to design, treatment group and assessment tools, poor reporting of methodology and poor specification of the cognitive abilities assessed. Focused and rigorous experimental designs including a range of cognitive measures assessing more precisely defined abilities are needed to fill the gaps in our knowledge and follow up reported patterns in the literature. Longitudinal studies are needed to improve our understanding of the influence of factors such as age, tolerance and the stability of cognitive effects. Future trials comparing the effects of commonly prescribed agents across patient subgroups will offer critical insight into the role of patient characteristics in determining the cognitive impact of particular AEDs.

Indexed as

antiepileptic drugscognitionepilepsymedicationneuropsychologyseizure

Identifiers

PMID22164192
PMCPMC3229254

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.