Epilepsy Talk

Dilantin — Hero or Horror?

Dilantin (Phenytoin) can be considered the grandfather of all epilepsy medications.

Although it was invented in 1908 as a chemical that could prevent convulsions during electroshock treatment, its popularity grew quickly, and as early as 1940, it was hailed as initiating a whole new epoch of anti-epilepsy drugs, motivating researchers to seek even more effective medications and pharmaceutical companies set up aggressive screening programs.

In the next two decades, a dozen new anticonvulsants were introduced into clinical therapy!

Today, Dilantin remains one of the most widely used drugs in the world.