Epilepsy research cautiously welcomed

Development of a breakthrough drugs which could be used to treat epilepsy have received a cautious welcome from the Epilepsy Society.

Scientists at the University of Sheffield believe 46 compounds they have discovered could pioneer new treatments.

Some of the compounds, which all feature anticonvulsant properties, are already used in products designed for infectious, inflammatory and psychiatric conditions.

Dr Vincent Cunliffe from the university's department of biomedical science said tests conducted on two-day-old zebrafish with epilepsy has proven successful but professor Ley Sanders of the Epilepsy Society isn't getting too excited.

He said: "This is an interesting development and one which may eventually lead to new treatments for some people with epilepsy.

"However at this point it must be remembered that there is no firm evidence that the zebrafish model truly mimics human epilepsy."

Currently, more than 600,000 (one in thirteen) people in the UK have epilepsy and 87 people are diagnosed with the condition each day.

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