View clinical trials related to Epilepsies, Partial.
Filter by:Epilepsy is the most common chronic neurological disorder in the world, affecting more than 50 million people worldwide. Approximately 35% of patients with epilepsy are refractory to all available antiepileptic drugs. Drug-resistant epilepsies are often partial or focal. Patients with drug-resistant focal epilepsy suffer from an increased risk of death, primarily due to seizure-related fatalities, in comparison with the general population. The only therapeutic option for this form of epilepsy is the surgical removal of the region of the brain responsible for seizures, called the epileptogenic zone (EZ). This requires the precise localization of the EZ based on a comprehensive pre-surgical evaluation of patients. Today the gold standard for localizing the EZ and validating a non-invasive technique for localization of the EZ remains intracerebral stereo-EEG (stereo-electroencephalography or SEEG) recordings of spontaneous seizures. The implementation strategy of the intracerebral depth electrodes is guided by clinical and neuroimaging data, including anatomical Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Positron Emission Tomography (PET) with FDG (fluoro-Deoxy-Glucose) and MagnetoEncephaloGraphy (MEG). Although the contribution of each technique in the pre-surgical localization of the EZ has already been shown, no wide-scale study has examined the cumulative contribution of these three techniques.
Surgery may be an effective therapy for refractory focal epilepsies with a clear delineated focus but surgical benefits are less clear for patients with a poorly defined focus such as non lesional refractory partial epilepsies. SEEG is considered the criterion standard to localize the epileptogenic zone (EZ) but the procedure is risky with a limited spatial sampling. The development of non-invasive neuroimaging alternatives is thus an important goal to improve EZ delineation and optimize SEEG procedures. The main hypothesis of this research project is the existence of a network organization specific for each patient which allows the generation and propagation of epileptic activities. The investigators wish to explore this network using diffusion tensor MRI to study structural connectivity and MEG/FMRI to study functional connectivity. The investigators will apply tools from the theories of complex networks and dynamical systems to characterize the network organization of epileptic process. The investigators aimed to identify and localize differences in connectivity parameters between individual patients and a control group of healthy volunteers.
Background: - Drug resistant epilepsy is the term used to describe epilepsy that cannot be controlled by medication. Many people whose seizures do not respond to medication will respond to surgical treatment, relieving seizures completely or almost completely in one-half to two-thirds of patients who qualify for surgery. The tests and surgery performed as part of this treatment are not experimental, but researchers are interested in using the data collected as part of routine standard epilepsy care to better understand epilepsy and its treatment. Objectives: - To use surgery as a treatment for drug resistant epilepsy in children and adults. Eligibility: - Children and adults at least 8 years of age who have simple or complex partial seizures (seizures that come from one area of the brain) that have not responded to medication, and who are willing to have brain surgery to treat their medically intractable epilepsy. Design: - Participants will be screened with a medical history, physical examination, and neurological examination. Imaging studies, including magnetic resonance imaging and computer-assisted tomography (CT), may also be conducted as part of the screening. Participants who do not need surgery or whose epilepsy cannot be treated surgically will follow up with a primary care physician or neurologist and will not need to return to the National Institutes of Health for this study. - Prior to the surgery, participants will have the following procedures to provide information on the correct surgical approach. - Video electroencephalography monitoring to measure brain activity during normal activities within a 24-hour period. Three to four 15-minute breaks are allowed within this period. - Electrodes placed directly in the brain or on the surface of the brain to measure brain activities and determine the part of the brain that is responsible for the seizures (seizure focus). - Participants will have a surgical procedure at the site of their seizure focus. Brain lesions, abnormal blood vessels, tumors, infections, or other areas of brain abnormality will be either removed or treated in a way that will stop or help prevent the spread of seizures without affecting irreplaceable brain functions, such as the ability to speak, understand, move, feel, or see. - Participants will return for outpatient visits and brain imaging studies 2 months, 1 year, and 2 years after surgery.