The anticonvulsants, sometimes also called antiepileptics, belong to a diverse group of pharmaceuticals used in prevention of the occurrence of epileptic seizures.

Many typical anticonvulsants work by blocking voltage-sensitive sodium channels in the brain.

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	Causes and Treatments of Seizures (352 words) Antiepileptic drugs act by: (1) preventing the sodium channel from opening; (2) facilitating the passage of chloride ions into the cell; (3) inhibiting T-calcium currents; and (4) antagonizing one or more types of glutamate receptors. The following factors should be considered prior to the initiation of antiepileptic drugs in neonates with seizures without etiology-specific therapy: (1) clinical consequences, and duration and frequency of the seizure; (2) natural history of the disorder; and (3) possible side effects of the seizures and the antiepileptic drugs. Most physicians tend to use antiepileptic drugs for prolonged and recurrent focal and clonic paroxysmal motor events, and avoid using antiepileptic drugs for myoclonus provoked by stimulation or for generalized tonic posturing or automatisms provoked by stimulation or suppressed by restraint.
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