Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39237847›Full record

ArticleNeurocritical care2025

Effectiveness of Fosphenytoin and Levetiracetam to Prevent Posttraumatic Seizures in Young Children with Accidental or Abusive Traumatic Brain Injury.

Caitlin R McNamara, Cesar I Menchaca, Taylor J Abel, Christopher M Horvat, Rachel P Berger, Ericka L Fink, Patrick M Kochanek, Dennis W Simon

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Neurocritical care, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
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

8 authors.

Caitlin R McNamaraDepartment of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. mcnamaracr@upmc.edu.ORCID 0000-0001-6312-8720
Cesar I MenchacaDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, St. Joseph's Children's Hospital, Tampa, FL, USA.
Taylor J AbelDepartment of Neurological Surgery and Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Christopher M HorvatDepartment of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Rachel P BergerDepartment of Pediatrics and Clinical and Translational Science, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Ericka L FinkDepartment of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Patrick M KochanekDepartment of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Dennis W SimonDepartment of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.

Funding

PEDIATRIC NEUROINTENSIVE CARE AND RESUSCITATION RESEARCHT32HD040686 · NICHD · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · PI Robert S B Clark, PATRICK M KOCHANEK · 2000 to 2026
$7.1M
Impact of microbiota-derived metabolites on traumatic brain injury-related neurodegenerationR01NS127372 · NINDS · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · PI Robert S B Clark, Michael Morowitz · 2023 to 2026
$2.2M
National Institute of Health 5T32HD040686-22NICHD NIH HHS T32 HD040686NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS127372
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSeizures occur frequently in pediatric patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI), particularly abusive head trauma (AHT). There are limited data on the effectiveness of fosphenytoin and levetiracetam to prevent posttraumatic seizures.

methodsWe performed a retrospective single center cohort study of children < 3 years old admitted with mild [Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score 13-15], moderate (GCS 9-12), and severe (GCS 3-8) TBI at a level I trauma center from 2011 to 2021. Antiseizure medications were used at the discretion of the treating physicians. Nonparametric tests were used to compare antiseizure medication prophylaxis and TBI etiology.

resultsA total of 717 patients (263 with AHT, 454 with accidental TBI) were included, of whom 135 (19%) received fosphenytoin, 152 (21%) received levetiracetam, and 430 (60%) did not receive any seizure prophylaxis. Over the study period, the use of fosphenytoin prophylaxis decreased (R

conclusionsIn children < 3 years old with TBI, no differences were observed in occurrence of seizures between patients who received fosphenytoin and patients who received levetiracetam prophylaxis after controlling for patient factors including severity of injury. Levetiracetam may be an equally effective alternative to fosphenytoin for seizure prophylaxis for early posttraumatic seizure prevention in this age group.

Indexed as

Accidental InjuriesAnticonvulsantsBrain Injuries, TraumaticChild AbuseLevetiracetamPhenytoinSeizuresChild, PreschoolFemaleHumansInfantMaleRetrospective StudiesAnticonvulsantsfosphenytoinLevetiracetamPhenytoinChild abuseFosphenytoinLevetiracetamProphylaxisSeizureTraumatic brain injury

Identifiers

PMID39237847
PMCPMC11880359

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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.