Combined Use of Conventional Medicine with Traditional Korean Medicine to Treat Children with Epilepsy

Objective: Few studies have been conducted among pediatric patients to examine clinical outcomes associated with the combined use of Oriental medicine and other therapies to treat epilepsy. The purpose of this study was to examine the clinical and laboratory characteristics of children with epilepsy being treated with traditional Korean medicine (TKM) in addition to their conventional antiepileptic drugs (AEDs), and to survey whether other nonpharmacologic combination treatments were also being used. Methods: The study included 398 pediatric patients with epilepsy being treated at the Pediatric Neurology Clinic of Pusan National University Children's Hospital. A questionnaire-based survey was carried out to determine the extent to which combination treatments were being used from March 1 to July 31, 2011. Results: Of the 398 epileptic patients, 75 (18.8%) were receiving treatment based on TKM in addition to their AED treatment. The number of AEDs used was significantly greater in this group (mean +/- standard deviation, 2.3 +/- 1.5) than in the group not receiving TKM (2.0 +/- 1.2; p = .028). The number of seizure-free patients in the TKM group (44 patients [59%]) was significantly reduced (p = .037) compared with the group not receiving such treatment (236 patients [73%]). Of the 398 patients, 237 (59.5%) were receiving other combination treatments. Fifty-six of the 75 patients (74.7%) in the TKM group were receiving other combination treatments (p < .001 compared with nonusers), which included language therapy, education therapy (music therapy, art therapy), Chuna therapy, and health food supplements (p = .004, p < .001, p = .011, and p = .004, respectively). The use of other combination treatments, such as rehabilitation therapy, counseling, cognitive behavioral therapy, and neurofeedback therapy, did not differ between the two groups. Conclusions: The TKM group took more AEDs and had fewer seizure-free patients and more patients receiving other combination treatments, such as language, music, and art therapies.