First practice with Covid‑19, epilepsy, and vaccination: (literature review, clinical case study)

A novel coronavirus infection, COVID‑19, has been one of the most serious medical and social concerns in modern society for more than a year.

THE PURPOSE of the work was to present the research review as well as the first clinical experience with COVID‑19 vaccine Sputnik V for the prevention of coronavirus.

METHODS. The work is part of the «COVID‑19 and Epilepsy» initiative. The tolerance of immunization and its influence on epilepsy dynamics were being investigated in an observational study of epilepsy patients who had been immunized with COVID‑19 prophylactic vaccinations. This study used the keywords «epilepsy COVID‑19, immunization» to conduct a literature search in the Scopus and RSCI databases. A clinical case of vaccination tolerance in a patient suspected of having comorbid pathology of pharmacoresistant epilepsy.

RESULTS. Thirteen papers were included in the study, all of which described the first experiences of epilepsy patients being vaccinated. Clinical reports of worsening epilepsy following immunization are presented in two publications: seizure debut and status epilepticus. In the majority of the studies, there was no evidence of immunisation having a deleterious influence on epilepsy progression. After epilepsy surgery and concomitant pathology, a patient with focal pharmacoresistant epilepsy with 3-year remission received doses of the sputnik V vaccine with no adverse events and seizure remission was sustained.

CONCLUSIONS. The study of vaccination in epilepsy is characterised by relevance, internationality and breadth in research on the problem. The results of this study showed good tolerability of the Sputnik-V vaccine and with seizure remission in an elderly patient with comorbid epilepsy after neurosurgical management of epilepsy. The results will help practitioners to decide on the management of patients with epilepsy.

Further research is needed on the use of vaccination in epilepsy.

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