A New Treatment Solution for SMEI in Children

Dravet Syndrome is a fatal disease which was formerly known as Severe Myoclonic Epilepsy of Infancy or SMEI for short. A person suffering from Dravet Syndrome has to deal with multiple seizures and extremely high fever. The signs and symptoms of the Dravet Syndrome start showing up during infancy or around the age of six months old.

The intensity of the seizures keeps increasing as the child starts to grow older. Children with Dravet Syndrome also show signs of various behavioral disorders and have difficulty in relating to other children of their age. They also suffer from lagged development and growth issues, hypersensitivity, sleeping disorders, interpreting language and they also have slow development when it comes to their motor skills. The worst part is that it gets a lot worse as the child grows older unless they are treated with the latest drugs.

This disease is usually treated with an anticonvulsant medication such as Valproate, Stiripentol, Clobazam, and Topiramate. However, a new treatment solution has been proposed for Dravet Syndrome. CBD, also known as Cannabidiol, which is also found in certain cannabis strains, has shown significant changes in patients that suffer from seizures; hence, it has been recommended by many doctors with scientific backing that CBD should be used for treating children with Dravet Syndrome. Up till now, a few experiments have also been performed on mice, and due to the outstanding results, it is hoped by these experts that CBD will work wonders on humans as well.

CBD works by triggering the CB1 receptors of our brain, which stops the neurotransmitter responsible for causing seizures from releasing into our body. This whole process is also known as “silencing the seizure”. According to a recent report, a few experiments were carried out in Denmark on children that suffered from Dravet Syndrome. After the treatment, the child experienced significantly fewer seizures and was able to sleep peacefully at night. According to a recent survey conducted on the parents with children suffering from Dravet Syndrome, it was found the 85% of the parents agreed that CBD was a much better and effective medicine for Dravet Syndrome, compared to the other traditional anticonvulsant medications that they used on a daily basis, before they found out about CBD.

For more facts about CBD, check out www.cannabis.net/blog/history/12-cbd-facts-you-need-to-know-right-now.