Relationship between age and vitamin E level in epileptic and normal children.

Plasma vitamin E was assayed in 100 children on anticonvulsants either singly or in combination. Their plasma vitamin E levels were lower than in 100 apparently normal children. The age range of the children was between 2 and 12 years. The plasma vitamin E levels of the control children were lower than published values for adults. In the normal course of development, vitamin E levels increase with age but this developmental pattern does not occur in groups of epileptic children, and this may be related to the metabolic effects of drug therapy in epilepsy.