Abstract

Viscum album (European mistletoe) extracts have known immunomodulatory effects but little data exist on anticonvulsant activity despite its usefulness having been reported for centuries. A 4½-year-old girl with childhood absence epilepsy and global developmental delay was treated with different antiepileptic drugs and ketogenic diet but failed to become seizure free over a 2-year period. She also received different herbal remedies as part of an integrative medicine approach. Initial improvement occurred on valproate-ethosuximide, a further improvement was seen after adding clobazam to valproate. Final cessation of absence activity occurred after a dose increase of V album. She was still seizure free at the 12-month follow-up. V album appears to have been a necessary adjunct treatment for this child to become seizure free. We call on physicians to report their experiences of V album in epilepsy and suggest further study.

Citation: von Schoen-Angerer, T., Madeleyn, R., Kienle, G., Kiene, H., & Vagedes, J. (2015). Viscum Album in the Treatment of a Girl With Refractory Childhood Absence Epilepsy. Journal of Child Neurology, 30(8), 1048–1052. https://doi.org/10.1177/0883073814541473