This is a succinct, portable, essential guide to the practical management of women with epilepsy for busy clinicians.

Epilepsy requires careful management and monitoring through a woman’s life Epilepsy is a complex disease. The hormonal changes women experience, both day-to-day menstrual fluctuations and the longer waxes and wanings of a reproductive lifetime, make the management of epilepsy even more complicated. At some point, the well-being of a second person, a fetus, might also have to be taken into account. Epilepsy in Women provides a detailed guide to this challenge. The wide-ranging approach encompasses all aspects of a woman’s life including: Social and psychological impacts The impact in reproductive life Contraception Pregnancy Fetal health and long term developmental outcomes Lactation Menopause Each practical chapter begins and ends with a case study that demonstrates the more general challenge. The authors develop themes to provide clinical guidance based on evidence and experience. Written and edited by an international cast of experts, Epilepsy in Women provides crucial tips and recommendations for neurologists and gynecologists who need to be aware of the subtle effects of epilepsy on woman’s life.

Designed to provide a comprehensive but accessible introduction to epilepsy and seizure disorders, Epilepsy, 2nd edition provides state-of-the-art information in a concise format useful to a wide audience, from neurology residents to epilepsy fellows and practitioners. This illustrated guide to the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of epilepsy is a valuable resource enabling clinicians to stay on top of the latest recommendations for best practice.

At various stages in their life cycle, women with epilepsy have different needs from men and need a more female-orientated service. However, services for people with epilepsy remain androcentric and largely ignore that 50% of the recipients of epilepsy care in the United Kingdom are female. Indeed, 40% of those women engaged with epilepsy services

Published in association with the Epilepsy Foundation of America, this handbook reviews the special problems faced by women with epilepsy.

There are unique challenges to the care of women with epilepsy, including the gender-specific influences that women may experience owing to their age, hormonal status, and co-morbidities. Pregnancy is also a very important time for many women with epilepsy. This textbook is a portable, essential guide to the practical management of women with epilepsy. Busy clinicians can access a wealth of information summarized in a succinct and easily accessible format. Experts from around the world have reviewed and synthesized the available data from studies in hormones in epilepsy, pregnancy registries, and many aspects of the care of women with epilepsy from adolescence, through pregnancy, to menopause. Of interest to all who care for women with epilepsy, including neurologists, internists, obstetricians, anesthetists, primary care practitioners, nurses, and lactation consultants.

Epilepsy in pregnancy poses a serious threat to the mother and to her developing child. Even in previously well-controlled epilepsy, physiological changes in the mother during pregnancy and also during labour and delivery can alter the pharmacokinetic drug (AED) therapy causing increased seizure frequency.