Real-Life Math
Nineteen-year-old Wessie has been suffering from epilepsy since
she was five years old. Having subjected her to a battery of brain surface
analysis tests, you have found that she has several surface lesions. Although
she is not what you might call a serious case, she will require attention.
Wessie
suffers from partial seizures, as opposed to grand mal seizures, where the
situation can be life-threatening. In spite of this, you think she should
be put on some kind of medication.
Felbamate is effective against several
kinds of seizures. It has a low neurotoxicity (not many side effects) and
has a small potential for the development of tolerance. It comes in 400- and
600-mg tablets and the maximum dosage per day for Wessie would be about 1,200
mg.
Gabapentine is another promising new drug being used in neuromedicine.
It also displays a small toxicity to the system (few side effects). Wessie
could be given up to 1,200 mg of this stuff per day without any ill effects.
"Any
kind of math you can imagine -- anything from algebra to geometry to physics
to simple math -- is found in neurology," says electroneurologist Janet James.
"There are many measurements and calculations when dealing with an abnormal
brain."
It has been decided that Wessie will be put on the drugs for
a period of 12 days. You're going to combine the drugs, using 60 percent
felbamate and 40 percent gabapentine. How much of each drug would be required
to keep the patient on her drug program for the 12 days?