Rufo-Campos M
Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocio, Sevilla, España.
Rev Neurol. 2002 Sep;35 Suppl 1:S51-8.
This review has been prepared in response to the increasing interest shown in understanding the part played by melatonin in the body, which has led to the search for new uses of it in cerebral disorders, such as sleep disorders including insomnia, irritability, depression, behaviour disorders and even the treatment of autism, since sleep disorders also occur in this condition. We pay particular attention to studies involving epilepsy.
We show that interest in melatonin is rapidly increasing and new discoveries are being made of the part it plays in the biological regulation of circadian rhythm, sleep, mood, ageing, tumour growth and reproduction. Perhaps these processes between them have led to its use in the treatment of many current problems such as neuroprotection, migraine and the control of epileptic seizures.
It has been shown that in both children and adults melatonin is of low toxicity and may be used in high risk persons. In this paper we make a careful analysis of recent publications in the medical literature dealing with the use of melatonin in the control of epileptic seizures and discuss its advantages and disadvantages. However, as with other types of treatment, further study, both experimental and otherwise, is necessary for confirmation.
撰写本综述是为了回应人们对了解褪黑素在人体中所起作用的兴趣日益浓厚的情况。这引发了人们探索其在脑部疾病中的新用途，比如在包括失眠、易怒、抑郁、行为障碍等睡眠障碍，甚至在自闭症治疗中的应用，因为自闭症也会出现睡眠障碍。我们特别关注涉及癫痫的研究。
我们发现对褪黑素的兴趣正在迅速增长，并且在其在昼夜节律、睡眠、情绪、衰老、肿瘤生长和生殖的生物调节中所起的作用方面有了新的发现。或许正是这些过程促使其被用于治疗许多当前的问题，如神经保护、偏头痛和癫痫发作的控制。
已表明无论是儿童还是成人，褪黑素的毒性都很低，可用于高危人群。在本文中，我们仔细分析了医学文献中近期有关褪黑素用于控制癫痫发作的出版物，并讨论了其优缺点。然而，与其他类型的治疗一样，需要进一步的实验研究及其他研究来加以证实。
