Lay summary
For around 40% of women with epilepsy, the menstrual cycle increases their seizure frequency two-fold or more. Building on my past studies, in this project I propose a clinical trial of memantine in the treatment of females with epilepsy. Particularly where a menstrual cycle-linked worsening of seizures is reported i.e. in catamenial epilepsy. This is because it directly acts to suppress a key mechanism by which hormones can make seizures worse. Additionally, my team recently developed new recommendations for tracking catamenial seizures and a simple standardisable way to diagnose it. We will develop a mobile phone application that integrates this algorithm. Our focus is to make it accessible to people with diverse needs. Overall, this research has wide-reaching possibilities for scientific and clinical impact, especially for females with epilepsy.