CLINICAL-TRIAL OF PIRACETAM IN PATIENTS WITH MYOCLONUS - NATIONWIDE MULTIINSTITUTION STUDY IN JAPAN

Sixty patients with disabling myoclonus excluding mainly spinal myoclo nus were treated by piracetam as an open-labeled study, and myoclonus score, neurological symptoms, functional disbility, and intensity of m yoclonus were scored before and after treatment, including a blinded v ideo inspection. Electrophysiological correlation also was investigate d before and after treatment. Piracetam was effective in myoclonus, es pecially that of cortical origin, in both monotherapy and polytherapy. Piracetam also had positive benefits on gait ataxia and convulsions b ut not on dysarthria, and feeding and hand writing improved much more significantly. Psychologically significant improvement was seen in dec reased motivation, sleep disturbance, attention deficit, and depressio n, all of which might be possibly secondary benefits associated with i mprovement of myoclonus. There was no positive correlation between cli nical and electrophysiological improvement. Tolerance was good, and si de effects were transient. However, hematological abnormalities observ ed in at least two patients in the present study should be kept in min d when relatively large doses of piracetam are administered, especiall y in combination with other antimyoclonic drugs.