Assessing the link between omega-3 fatty acids, cardiac arrest, and sudden unexpected death in epilepsy
Taha AY, Ciobanu FA, Saxena A, and McIntyre Burnham W (2009) Assessing the link between omega-3 fatty acids, cardiac arrest, and sudden unexpected death in epilepsy. Epilepsy Behav 14:1 27–31.
Abstract: People with epilepsy may have abnormal cardiac function. This has been linked to a greater incidence of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP). In the present review, we assess the evidence linking cardiac failure to SUDEP, and propose the use of the maximal pentylenetetrazol seizure test to model SUDEP in animals to identify causal links between cardiac failure and SUDEP. We also discuss recent claims on the use of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids to reduce the incidence of SUDEP because of their cardioprotective and anticonvulsant effects.
Keywords: Cardiac arrest, Arrhythmias, Ischemia, Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, Docosahexaenoic acid, Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy
Context
- Though the title focuses on omega-3 fatty acids, the abstract and the remainder of the document are chiefly concerned with the pentylenetetrazol seizure model Carnel et al.; Lathers and Schraeder; Schraeder and Lathers