When would you start antiepileptic drugs in a critically ill patient who develops myoclonic jerks but has not yet had an EEG?
3
2 AnswersMednet Member
Neurology · Stanford Health Care Stroke Center
Treatment depends on the setting in which these myoclonic jerks are seen.
In a non-cardiac arrest patient, such myoclonic jerks are often due to medications, organ dysfunction (e.g., uremia, etc), electrolyte imbalance, or non-convulsive seizures, etc, and workup for this is recommended with labs, h...
Mednet Member
Neurology · Cook County Health
I generally err on the side of caution by starting ASM when unclear about the etiology for myoclonic jerks, especially in the setting of cardiac arrest/concern for anoxic brain injury, especially if there are delays in obtaining an EEG. If the EEG monitoring does not reveal seizures or epileptiform ...