Anti-epileptogenic Effects of Eslicarbazepine Acetate

Inclusion criteria

• ✓. Male or female patient aged 18 years or above;
• ✓. Acute intracerebral haemorrhage with a CAVE score ≥ 3 or acute ischaemic stroke with a SeLECT score ≥ 6, in each case confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)/computed tomography (CT).
• ✓. Time of stroke occurrence is known and V1b is planned within 96 hours.
• ✓. Brain scan analysis has reliably excluded structural brain lesions that can mimic stroke, e.g. cerebral tumour or brain abscess, etc.
• ✓. a. Patient is able to give informed consent and to write and has signed written informed consent OR b. Patient is able to give informed consent, but unable to write and has provided verbal witnessed consent OR c. Patient is unable to give informed consent, but likely to regain this ability until V2, and the informed consent is deferred OR d. Patient is unable to give informed consent, but likely to regain this ability until V2, and patient's legal representative (according to the respective national/local requirements) has provided written informed consent.
• ✓. Female patients without childbearing potential (2 years postmenopausal, bilateral oophorectomy or tubal ligation, or complete hysterectomy) are eligible. Female patients with childbearing potential must not be pregnant as confirmed by a negative pregnancy test and sexually active females must use a medically acceptable effective nonhormonal method of contraception up to the end of the current menstrual cycle after stopping treatment. Acceptable methods for women are surgical intervention (e.g. bilateral tubal occlusion), intrauterine device, double-barrier methods, true sexual abstinence (i.e. when this is in line with the preferred and usual lifestyle of the patient) and vasectomised male partner, provided that he is the sole partner of that patient. Periodic abstinence (e.g., calendar, ovulation, symptothermal, post-ovulation methods) and withdrawal are not acceptable methods of contraception.
• ✓. V1b is within 96 hours after stroke occurrence. Inclusion criteria at V2 (only applicable for patients who were unable to give informed consent at V1a.)