The presence of natural 24-hour oscillations within the body provides often overlooked opportunities for treatment of epilepsy. By simply tailoring the drug regimen to an individual's circadian rhythm, recent studies suggest one can improve the effectiveness of antiepileptic drugs, while reducing side effects. Daily variations in seizure occurrence and drug side effects create optimal timing windows for delivery of medication. Conversely, in certain epilepsy syndromes, there is growing evidence that both sleep and circadian rhythm can be distorted or misaligned. Thus, therapeutic re-entrainment of rhythms via application of zeitgebers (chronobiotics) may represent an untapped opportunity for improving patient quality of life.
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