KEPPRA Reviews (LEVETIRACETAM)

Average Rating: 2.7 (198 Ratings)

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 ANTICONVULSANTS

 Type: Rx Drug

  

KEPPRA  (LEVETIRACETAM):  Levetiracetam is used with other medications to treat seizures (epilepsy). It belongs to a class of drugs known as anticonvulsants. Levetiracetam may decrease the number of seizures you have.   FDA Approval Date: 1999-11-30 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)

  

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Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR KEPPRACOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 1  epilepsy /brain tumours removed Horrendous! Lamotrogine working well but Keppra added to help further. Dreadful, angry, depressed, aggressive, wanting to drink alcohol, suicidal, unreasonable, considered self harm. Poor balance, cried a lot. I did not recognise myself and neither did my family. Normally, friendly and good tempered.Laughing a lot! Behaved well through all surgery etc and not one to make a fuss - positive thinking is the best way. KEPPRA was a nightmare. GP had not prescribed - the hospital controlled medication for epilepsy etc. They were excellent at all times - but when the effects were seen, they immediately said Keppra - slowly come off. I have now down to 500mg am and 500mg pm and hugely better. No longer depressed angry or suicidal but I am cross that such a drug can be given with no warning of the possible side effects. My General Practitioner who had known me for years - did not see these side effects and recommended me to a psychiatrist!! Fortunately, the consultants took over and n Panic attacks for 6 years - diagnosed eventually as epilepsy 2 brain tumours. Removed through superb surgery and care. Some remaining epilepsy hence drugs to control Resulting in being given Keppra. F 65
2000mg 2X day
1/4/2011
 1  Epilepsy I took this 11 years ago so I don't remember what the dosage was, only that it was increased each month. The first month, not much as far as side effects, and certainly no help. Second month at a higher dosage, still no help but gained 5 pounds. Third month and a higher dosage, smidge of help and gained 10 pounds. Fourth month there wasn't much more help, but I gained FOURTY POUNDS!!! The thing was, it also took my appetite from me so I wasn't eating at all. I got pregnant, went off the medication, and the pregnancy seems to be what stopped the seizures for a while. The one good thing it did was to muck about with my hormones and put them back where they were before I had gone on birth control when I first got married. It made it possible for me to get pregnant by shortening the length of my cycle from 14-16 days down to 10. Other than that...nothing. F 38 4 months
2X day
11/28/2010
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 2  siezure At first, loss of memory, trouble thinking and recalling words. Blurred vision. Dizziness, numbness tingling in hands and feet. Weakness in hands. And RAGE!! Most of the side effects went away after several months. Reduced over time. The rage reduced only slightly. No Seizures at all for 2.5 years. I felt it was worth it to continue. About 1 year ago, I started to get some mouth problems. At first it was a metalic taste and dry feeling, but also a lot of saliva. This got worse and worse over time. I asked for help from everyone. Doctor, dentist, neuro, hygenist. They all said my mouth looked normal, but one said she could refer me to a dermatologist. I lived with it, then 10 days ago I got a rash. The neuro switched me to lamictal. All was fine for first three days. I felt better than I had in 2.5 years. Then I increased dose to 50mg2x/day and had two seizures. Then I when the dose was to 75mg2x/day, I got the same mouth problem as with the keppra, but 10x worse. Yesterday, I got the rash again, only it came on in 30 minutes (instead of over three days like with the keppra) and is much worse than on the keppra. Apparently my body is rejecting both of these meds. Now, I have to change again and all the options sound really bad. I'm really scared. F 45 2.5 years
5oomg 2X day
10/25/2010
 4  Epilepsy At 500 2 x a day at first very tired, but otherwise ok. Recently neuro increased me to 1000mg x2 a day and I am NAUSEOUS!! my legs hurt, I cant even stand up for 3 minutes without pain. It has reduced my seizures quite a bit though. F 40 90 days
500 2X day
6/30/2010
 1  Temporal Lobe Epilepsy major personality changes, anger, depression, irrational thoughts. I would constantly remember and rehash horrible events from 20 years ago. Things that used to never bother me all of a sudden did. I hurt my loved ones very badly while on keppra I would not recommend Keppra to anyone. M 44 1 years
2X day
5/2/2010
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 1  Seizure Disorder Irritability, insomnia, severe headaches, anxiety, tremors, fatigue. Had only had 1 seizure ever (2 months ago) when neurologist prescribed this for me. Side effects were horrible and effected every aspect of daily life. I'm on lamictal right now and not doing so well either. Was ok at 50mg, but as soon as I began 100mg daily, I began having severe nausea and fatigue. Am miserable again, but hope side effects level off soon. F 37 2 weeks
500MG 2X day
4/21/2010
 5  nerve pain none really none F 59 3 days
100mg 2X day
4/7/2010
 4  epilepsy F 58 5 years
750 4X day
3/8/2010
 2  Partial complex seizures Major insomnia - was getting maybe 4 hrs sleep per night, even when taking sleep aids. Other effects were significant irritability, depression, SUICIDAL THOUGHTS (have never had those before - very strange...seemed like a reasonable course of action), fatigue, jittery, lack of energy, lack of mental focus. Dizzyness - was diagnosed with BPPV, a form of vertigo - not sure if Keppra caused it, but it diminished as soon as I stopped. Some weight gain. Not sure how many of those symptoms were a direct effect from the drug or the insomnia. Despite the side effects, it was effective in controlling my seizures. I ramped down off of Keppra and within days had multiple seizures. I have now switched to Depakote but haven't taken it long enough to judge. I have to take something, so hoping one of them will work for me. M 48 4 months
250 mg 3X day
2/21/2010
 1  Seizure Started at 500mg 2x/day, then after 5 days went to 1500 mg/day, with scheduled increase. I was fine for the first week, then went to an unrelated doctor appt. While there, I got shaky and confused. Thinking slowed. Difficulty walking, needed wheelchair. Caused seizure like activity. Speech became elongated , distorted, and slow. Speech became VERY slow, then could not move arms. Tears for no reason(I mean HYSTERICAL!) Apologized all over for everything. Started making odd noises and could not stop. Started shaking all over. They took me to the ER and I became very tired. They kept hollering at me to keep my eyes open and talk to them. Might get exceptionally quiet/softspoken. Doctors believed these were side effects of Keppra, not seizures. They tried reducing the dose fom 1500 mg/day to 1000. The next day I was in the ER again for the same symptoms, but also noticed my upper back ardhed backward. After 3 trips to ER, they took me off & switched me to another drug which I didn't have much luck. I did notice that someone said the generic can hit you differently than the brand name drug. I took the one made by Torrent. F 51 2 weeks
500 mg 2X day
2/15/2010
 4  Frequent seizures; then Grand Mal I am constantly sleepy and several times a day I experience a brief feeling of utter melanchholy. Everything seems dismal. These feeling disappear in a matter of 30 to 60 seconds but are very disconcerting. Keppra has completely stopped my seizures. I take 500 mg. a day. Was trying 250 a day, but started having mild seizures again, so am now trying 500 mg. timed-release once a day (at night). I don't want to go on a different drug which may threaten my liver health. F 63 1.1 years
1/19/2010
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 3  partial complex epilepsy of the tem When I first started taking Keppra, I recall having dry mouth symptoms. Later, I started detecting an allergic reaction to what might have been the fillers used in Keppra. I complained to the drug manufacturer a few times. Whether it was the quality control department or the pharmacies that got down to the problem I don't know but I stopped getting sinus inflammation or an upset stomach. When this was going on it wasn't every time I got a prescription refill that I had those symtpoms. It was happening every now and then. I was told that the fillers used in Keppra were not always the same ones. The problem got fixed along the way and this was the brand Keppra not the generic. Recently, I am now on the generic but I have to give it time. It seems that I might be having a reaction to my amalgam-silver fillings and a gold crown molar tooth. I have dental expenses to take care of before saying it is a side-effect of the generic brand. I plan on removing amalgam fillings and getting When I first started taking keppra, I had a sharper focus on studying. Additionally, I felt more alert and energetic. Over the years, the heightened energy wore off. I continued to take Keppra because it helps me feel more balanced. Additionally, it does not cause fatigue or sleepiness like other anti-convulsants. I do not want to take a supplement with Keppra because I don't want to encounter adverse side effects from other meds that could have more serious consequences. Keppra is regarded as to be low risk for kidney problems. I experienced no aggressive behavior on this drug. As for seizures, I was told at the beginning keppra alone is not going to stop seizures. I was diagnosed with an underlying seizure of the temporal lobe of the brain at that time. Additionally, I was diagnosed positive for meniere's disease before I started keppra. I had several meniere's episode before taking keppra. Later I was told that in my case meniere's episodes were likely to be part of the epilepsy condition rather than an independent disorder. I agree with this because I get over the meniere's episodes in a shorter time than people with true meniere's disease. I continued keppra because it made me feel balanced. Over time seizures which only happened in my sleep became more graphic but the frequency of seizures was the same (occasional). No pattern was evident and I do not relate this to keppra because the causation is the environment. Keppra did not increase frequency of seizur F 57 8 years
11/5/2009
 5  Epilepsy (GrandMal) Minimal. Nothing I didn't already experience on other medications thus possibly eliminating them as actual side effects of Keppra. This one's been a godsend for me. I failed Dilantin (aggression), Neurontin (made seizures worse), Tegretol (ineffectiveness after 5 years despite increase in dosage along with interactions with other new meds I had to take) and Topamax (I flipped out on this after the first, lowest dose. 6 hour panic attack). My neurologist was initially hesitant to put me on this because I did fit the general profile of those who tend to be affected by the aggression side effects of Keppra... but this has never happened to me. I no longer have to deal with the brain fog side effects common to anticonvulsants, and that alone makes this one a dream. Seems to be very effective in monotherapy for controlling my seizures despite this not being explicitly approved for such. Have not had any seizure attacks requiring hospitalization to break them since starting Keppra. M 30 3 years
8/7/2009
 4  Cavernoma & Craniotomy Rage, Extreme anger issues (broke someones car windshield for making me angry) had no previous criminal record, need a daily nap in the middle of the day, hair loss, dry feet, Generic Keppra does NOT WORK! This drug caused me major weight gain of 100 pounds in 6 years. I am on 3,000 (yes three thousand) mg of Keppra and still having breakthrough seizures. Tried weening off the drug and seizures changed into longer episodes. Also just started Topamax 200 so we will see how this goes. F 28 6 years
8/5/2009
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 4  juvenile myoclonic epilepsy It was a lot better than depakote. I switched from depakote after taking it for 13 years. Am no where near as tired as I used to be, and am glad that I don't have to go take tests to see if my liver is doing okay. The only things I don't like about it, is I do feel more irratible around people (especially at work), and I think it may make my sinus very dry. All together better than depakote though. F 29 1 years
8/5/2009
 5  FOR SEIZURE NONE F 16 2 times
6/16/2009
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 4  epilepsy weight gain, memory loss and sluggish F 63 5 years
5/23/2009
 4  seizures following cerebral hem. quite a bit of sleepiness, following increased dosage My dad has used Keppra since 2002, as an alternative to Dilantin which was making him out of it 24 hours a day. Keppra clearly has enabled him to walk better and stay awake better during the day, and he's been happy with it. (I actually wrote to the company that manufacturers Keppra to thank them because we have been so grateful that he is off Dilantin.) No more seizures till 2008, after which Keppra dosage increased from 1000 to 1500mg/day. Now has more sleepiness, muscles not as strong. No mood issues, but he takes Zoloft concurrently. He takes a total of nine drugs including Plavix, Terazosin, BP and cholestrol meds, etc--so hard to know which ones may also contribute to symptoms, plus he has sleep apnea. M 84 7 years
3/29/2009
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 4  simple partial seizures a little skiddish and un-nerved. For example, someone honking a horn will put me over the edge for awhile. insomnia... but feel pretty sharp. Taking as a suppliment to lamictal. Needed as a result of a tumor removal. M 7 years
3/29/2009
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 4  Epilepsy - GM Seizure Irritation, Depression, Fatigue. I was taking 2,500 per day and recently switched to Keppra XR. 3 years - no seizures. So far, aside from the side effects, the drug works and I will stay on it. M 51 3 years
3/17/2009

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