Could a seizure drug also prevent sudden death in dravet syndrome?
NCT ID NCT07112365
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 16, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study tests whether the drug Fintepla (fenfluramine) can improve how the brain and lungs respond to carbon dioxide in people with Dravet syndrome, a severe epilepsy. Poor responses to CO2 may increase the risk of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP). Twenty-five participants will take Fintepla for about 60 days and undergo brain scans and breathing tests to measure changes.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Fenfluramine (Fintepla)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a way to lower the risk of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) for people with Dravet syndrome.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with only 25 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. It focuses on brain and breathing changes, not directly on preventing death, so benefits are uncertain.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 4
Runs after approval, following long-term safety and how well the treatment works in everyday use.
- Participants
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About 25 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Apr 2026
- Expected to finish
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Mar 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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16 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * DS patients (with or without SCN1A pathogenic mutations) * Generalized convulsive seizures Exclusion Criteria: * known cardiorespiratory, hepatic or renal disease, and/or * allergic reactions or other contraindications to fenfluramine and/or * on Stiripentol treatment, and/or * on serotonergic medications, and/or * contraindications to Midazolam anesthesia * taken the following drugs within 14 days: monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), anti-depressants (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs)), St. John's Wort, Tryptophan, and Dextromethorphan
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
RECRUITINGHouston, Texas, 77030, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can a new drug curb seizures in children with severe epilepsy?
- Newborn screening study aims to catch rare diseases at birth
- Virtual therapy helps kids with rare epilepsy gain daily living skills
- New hope for dravet syndrome: phase 3 trial of EPX-100 aims to cut seizures
- Could a repurposed drug tame seizures in adult dravet patients?
- New hope for rare epilepsy: fenfluramine made available for dravet patients