Can High-Dose Levetiracetam Be Safe? A Case Report of Prolonged Accidental High-Dose Levetiracetam Administration and Review of the Literature

Abstract

Levetiracetam is an antiepileptic drug that has been used both as adjunctive therapy and monotherapy in pediatric patients with epilepsy. We report a patient with cerebral palsy and epilepsy who took 200 mg/kg per day of levetiracetam for 55 days with no apparent adverse effects. Four other cases of accidental overdose were found in the literature; none of these was associated with any apparent adverse effects. These findings suggest that, in at least some cases, levetiracetam doses much higher than the recommended maximum of 60 mg/kg per day can be administered without apparent adverse effects.