Cypriot neurologists with two presentations at European meeting

The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics will be participating with two presentations in the scientific programme of the 17th Meeting of the European Neurological Society (ENS), beginning in Rhodes Saturday.

Senior Neurologist at the Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Director of the Clinical Neurophysiology Department of the Institute and Deputy Professor of Neurology at Rochester in New York Savvas Papacostas has told CNA that there would be an oral presentation and a poster session from Cyprus during the Meeting that will wrap up on June 20.

The oral presentation has to do with the efficacy and tolerability of a new anti-epilepsy drug, named Levetiracetam, under the trade name Keppra, in patients with treatment-resistant generalised epilepsy, who have been taking medication but not responded to it, Papacostas said.

”It appears that this new drug, in this form of epilepsy, is very effective compared to other treatments, since about two thirds of the patients who took it showed significant improvement,” he added.

The oral session will be presented by Papacostas, who was the senior author.

Referring to the poster session, Papacostas said ”it has to do with a new diagnostic method, which we have developed here at the Institute of Neurology” and which helps evaluate the neurogenic potentials using auditory stimuli originating from the vestibular system.

Papacostas, who was the senior author of the presentation, explained that when the vestibular nerve malfunctions, it causes vertigo, dizziness and other similar symptoms. This project will be presented by Eleftherios Papathanasiou.

According to a press release, more than 2,500 neurologists from all over Europe and non-European countries are expected to participate in the meeting, to discuss recent developments in all fields of neurology.