Sleep and epilepsy: A snapshot of knowledge and future research lines.

Sleep and epilepsy have a reciprocal relationship, and have been recognized as bedfellows since antiquity. However, research on this topic has made a big step forward only in recent years. In this narrative review we summarize the most stimulating discoveries and insights reached by the "European school." In particular, different aspects concerning the sleep-epilepsy interactions are analysed: (a) the effects of sleep on epilepsy; (b) the effects of epilepsy on sleep structure; (c) the relationship between epilepsy, sleep and epileptogenesis; (d) the impact of epileptic activity during sleep on cognition; (e) the relationship between epilepsy and the circadian rhythm; (f) the history and features of sleep hypermotor epilepsy and its differential diagnosis; (g) the relationship between epilepsy and sleep disorders.

Hippocampal Interictal Spikes during Sleep Impact Long-Term Memory Consolidation.

OBJECTIVE: Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep is supposed to play a key role in long-term memory consolidation transferring information from hippocampus to neocortex. However, sleep also activates epileptic activities in medial temporal regions. This study investigated whether interictal hippocampal spikes during sleep would impair long-term memory consolidation. METHOD: We prospectively measured visual and verbal memory performance in 20 patients with epilepsy investigated with stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) at immediate, 30-minute, and 1-week delays, and studied the correlations between interictal hippocampal spike frequency during waking and the first cycle of NREM sleep and memory performance, taking into account the number of seizures occurring during the consolidation period and other possible confounding factors, such as age and epilepsy duration. RESULTS: Retention of verbal memory over 1 week was negatively correlated with hippocampal spike frequency during sleep, whereas no significant correlation was found with hippocampal interictal spikes during waking. No significant result was found for visual memory. Regression tree analysis showed that the number of seizures was the first factor that impaired the verbal memory retention between 30 minutes and 1 week. When the number of seizures was below 5, spike frequency during sleep higher than 13 minutes was associated with impaired memory retention over 1 week. INTERPRETATION: Our results show that activation of interictal spikes in the hippocampus during sleep and seizures specifically impair long-term memory consolidation. We hypothesize that hippocampal interictal spikes during sleep interrupt hippocampal-neocortical transfer of information. ANN NEUROL 2020;87:976-987.

Accelerated long-term forgetting in focal epilepsy: Do interictal spikes during sleep matter?

Accelerated long-term forgetting (ALF) is a particular form of amnesia mostly encountered in focal epilepsy, particularly in temporal lobe epilepsy. This type of memory loss is characterized by an impairment of long-term consolidation of declarative memory, and its mechanisms remain poorly understood. In particular, the respective contribution of lesion, seizures, interictal epileptic discharges, and sleep is still debated. Here, we provide an overview of the relationships intertwining epilepsy, sleep, and memory consolidation and, based on recent findings from intracranial electroencephalographic recordings, we propose a model of ALF pathophysiology that integrates the differential role of interictal spikes during wakefulness and sleep. This model provides a framework to account for the different timescales at which ALF may occur.

Why do seizures impair consciousness and how can we reverse this?

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Consciousness disorders occurring during seizures are a major source of disability in people with epilepsy. The purpose of this review is to show recent developments in the assessment and understanding of consciousness disorders in epilepsy. RECENT FINDINGS: The most frequent alterations in consciousness are alterations in the level of awareness. They are linked to disruptions on a large-scale network of fronto-parietal associative systems in different forms of focal seizures or in absences. Different theories account for these alterations. SUMMARY: Although there is no specific treatment for 'consciousness,' high expectations are placed on brain stimulation techniques, which need to be better defined in the future in terms of targets and parameters.

Quantitative analysis of hyperkinetic seizures and correlation with seizure onset zone.

OBJECTIVE: Hyperkinetic epileptic seizures (HKS) are difficult to characterize and localize according to semiologic features. We propose a multicriteria scale to help visual analysis and report results of cerebral localization. METHODS: We assessed seizures from 37 patients with HKS, explored with stereoelectroencephalography during presurgical evaluation. We used a multicriteria scale (hyperkinetic seizure scale [HSS]) with 10 semiologic features, scored independently by two neurologists. The item scores were used to group seizures using the k-means method. Semiologic features were correlated with the seizure onset zone (SOZ) localization (temporal, prefrontal dorsolateral, prefrontal ventromesial, parietal, insular). RESULTS: Fifty-five seizures were analyzed, and each item of the HSS was compared between the two examiners with good interrater agreement (85.3%). Dystonia, integrated behavior, and bilateral or unilateral hyperkinetic movements were statistically significant according to localization. Three clusters were identified according to the HSS and correlated with different patterns of anatomic localization of SOZ. Cluster 1 was characterized clinically by asymmetric hyperkinetic movements associated with marked dystonia and vocalization. It mainly included parietal seizures. Cluster 2 was characterized by bilateral and symmetrical stereotyped hyperkinetic movements without dystonia. It represented half of temporal seizures and one-third of prefrontal seizures (dorsolateral). Cluster 3 was characterized by seizures with strong emotionality and vocalization with bilateral and symmetrical hyperkinetic movements and integrated behavior. It involved half of temporal seizures and a majority of prefrontal (ventromesial) seizures. SIGNIFICANCE: We propose a first attempt to quantify clinical patterns of HKS. The HSS may help to predict SOZ localization according to three main groups of hyperkinetic seizures.

High-frequency oscillations are not better biomarkers of epileptogenic tissues than spikes.

OBJECTIVE: High-frequency oscillations (HFOs) in intracerebral EEG (stereoelectroencephalography; SEEG) are considered as better biomarkers of epileptogenic tissues than spikes. How this can be applied at the patient level remains poorly understood. We investigated how well HFOs and spikes can predict epileptogenic regions with a large spatial sampling at the patient level. METHODS: We analyzed non-REM sleep SEEG recordings sampled at 2,048Hz of 30 patients. Ripples (Rs; 80-250Hz), fast ripples (FRs; 250-500Hz), and spikes were automatically detected. Rates of these markers and several combinations-spikes co-occurring with HFOs or FRs and cross-rate (Spk⊗HFO)-were compared to a quantified measure of the seizure onset zone (SOZ) by performing a receiver operating characteristic analysis for each patient individually. We used a Wilcoxon signed-rank test corrected for false-discovery rate to assess whether a marker was better than the others for predicting the SOZ. RESULTS: A total of 2,930 channels was analyzed (median of 100 channels per patient). The HFOs or any of its variants were not statistically better than spikes. Only one feature, the cross-rate, was better than all the other markers. Moreover, fast ripples, even though very specific, were not delineating all epileptogenic tissues. INTERPRETATION: At the patient level, the performance of HFOs is weakened by the presence of strong physiological HFO generators. Fast ripples are not sensitive enough to be the unique biomarker of epileptogenicity. Nevertheless, combining HFOs and spikes using our proposed measure-the cross-rate-is a better strategy than using only one marker. Ann Neurol 2018;83:84-97.

The effect of medial pulvinar stimulation on temporal lobe seizures.

We investigated the effect of electrical stimulation of the medial pulvinar (PuM) in terms of its effect on temporal lobe seizures. Eight patients with drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy undergoing stereoelectroencephalographic exploration were included. All had at least one electrode exploring the PuM. High-frequency (50 Hz) stimulations of the PuM were well tolerated in the majority of them. During diagnostic stimulation to confirm the epileptogenic zone, 19 seizures were triggered by stimulating the hippocampus. During some of these seizures, ipsilateral pulvinar stimulation was applied (130 Hz, pulse width = 450 microseconds, duration = 3-7 seconds, 1-2 mA). Compared to non-PuM-stimulated seizures, five of eight patients experienced clinically less severe seizures, particularly in terms of degree of alteration of consciousness. On the electrical level, seizures were more rapidly clonic with a shorter tonic phase. This proof of concept study is the first to suggest that PuM stimulation could be a well-tolerated and effective means of therapeutic deep brain stimulation in drug-resistant epilepsies.

Interictal stereotactic-EEG functional connectivity in refractory focal epilepsies.

Drug-refractory focal epilepsies are network diseases associated with functional connectivity alterations both during ictal and interictal periods. A large majority of studies on the interictal/resting state have focused on functional MRI-based functional connectivity. Few studies have used electrophysiology, despite its high temporal capacities. In particular, stereotactic-EEG is highly suitable to study functional connectivity because it permits direct intracranial electrophysiological recordings with relative large-scale sampling. Most previous studies in stereotactic-EEG have been directed towards temporal lobe epilepsy, which does not represent the whole spectrum of drug-refractory epilepsies. The present study aims at filling this gap, investigating interictal functional connectivity alterations behind cortical epileptic organization and its association with post-surgical prognosis. To this purpose, we studied a large cohort of 59 patients with malformation of cortical development explored by stereotactic-EEG with a wide spatial sampling (76 distinct brain areas were recorded, median of 13.2 per patient). We computed functional connectivity using non-linear correlation. We focused on three zones defined by stereotactic-EEG ictal activity: the epileptogenic zone, the propagation zone and the non-involved zone. First, we compared within-zone and between-zones functional connectivity. Second, we analysed the directionality of functional connectivity between these zones. Third, we measured the associations between functional connectivity measures and clinical variables, especially post-surgical prognosis. Our study confirms that functional connectivity differs according to the zone under investigation. We found: (i) a gradual decrease of the within-zone functional connectivity with higher values for epileptogenic zone and propagation zone, and lower for non-involved zones; (ii) preferential coupling between structures of the epileptogenic zone; (iii) preferential coupling between epileptogenic zone and propagation zone; and (iv) poorer post-surgical outcome in patients with higher functional connectivity of non-involved zone (within- non-involved zone, between non-involved zone and propagation zone functional connectivity). Our work suggests that, even during the interictal state, functional connectivity is reinforced within epileptic cortices (epileptogenic zone and propagation zone) with a gradual organization. Moreover, larger functional connectivity alterations, suggesting more diffuse disease, are associated with poorer post-surgical prognosis. This is consistent with computational studies suggesting that connectivity is crucial in order to model the spatiotemporal dynamics of seizures.10.1093/brain/awy214_video1awy214media15833456182001.

Brain regions and epileptogenicity influence epileptic interictal spike production and propagation during NREM sleep in comparison with wakefulness.

OBJECTIVE: Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep is known to be a brain state associated with an activation of interictal epileptic activity. The goal of this work was to quantify topographic changes occurring during NREM sleep in comparison with wakefulness. METHOD: We studied intracerebral recordings of 20 patients who underwent stereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) during presurgical evaluation for pharmacoresistant focal epilepsy. We measured the number of interictal spikes (IS) and quantified the co-occurrence of IS between brain regions during 1 hour of NREM sleep and 1 hour of wakefulness. Co-occurrence is a method to estimate IS networks based on a temporal concordance between IS of different brain regions. Each studied region was labeled as "seizure-onset zone" (SOZ), "propagation zone" (PZ), or "not involved region" (NIR). RESULTS: During NREM sleep, the number of interictal spikes significantly increased in all regions (mean of 68%). This increase was higher in medial temporal regions than in other regions, whether involved in the SOZ. Spike co-occurrence increased significantly in all regions during NREM sleep in comparison with wakefulness but was greater in neocortical regions. Spike co-occurrence in medial temporal regions was not higher than in other regions, suggesting that the increase of the number of spikes in this region was in great part a local effect. SIGNIFICANCE: This study demonstrated that medial temporal regions show a greater propensity to spike production or propagation during NREM sleep compared to other brain regions, even when the medial temporal lobe is not involved in the SOZ.

The different patterns of seizure-induced aphasia in temporal lobe epilepsies.

OBJECTIVES: Ictal language disturbances may occur in dominant hemisphere temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), but little is known about the precise anatomoelectroclinical correlations. This study investigated the different facets of ictal aphasia in intracerebrally recorded TLE. METHODS: Video-stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) recordings of 37 seizures in 17 right-handed patients with drug-resistant TLE were analyzed; SEEG electroclinical correlations between language disturbance and involvement of temporal lobe structures were assessed. In the clinical analysis, we separated speech disturbance from loss of consciousness. RESULTS: According to the region involved, different patterns of ictal aphasia in TLE were identified. Impaired speech comprehension was associated with posterior lateral involvement, anomia and reduced verbal fluency with anterior mediobasal structures, and jargonaphasia with basal temporal involvement. The language production deficits, such as anomia and low fluency, cannot be simply explained by an involvement of Broca's area, since this region was not affected by seizure discharge. SIGNIFICANCE: Assessment of language function in the early ictal state can be successfully performed and provides valuable information on seizure localization within the temporal lobe as well as potentially useful information for guiding surgery.

Long sleep time and excessive need for sleep: State of the art and perspectives.

The mechanisms underlying the individual need for sleep are unclear. Sleep duration is indeed influenced by multiple factors, such as genetic background, circadian and homeostatic processes, environmental factors, and sometimes transient disturbances such as infections. In some cases, the need for sleep dramatically and chronically increases, inducing a daily-life disability. This "excessive need for sleep" (ENS) was recently proposed and defined in a European Position Paper as a dimension of the hypersomnolence spectrum, "hypersomnia" being the objectified complaint of ENS. The most severe form of ENS has been described in Idiopathic Hypersomnia, a rare neurological disorder, but this disabling symptom can be also found in other hypersomnolence conditions. Because ENS has been defined recently, it remains a symptom poorly investigated and understood. However, protocols of long-term polysomnography recordings have been reported by expert centers in the last decades and open the way to a better understanding of ENS through a neurophysiological approach. In this narrative review, we will 1) present data related to the physiological and pathological variability of sleep duration and their mechanisms, 2) describe the published long-term polysomnography recording protocols, and 3) describe current neurophysiological tools to study sleep microstructure and discuss perspectives for a better understanding of ENS.

Spotlight on Sleep Stage Classification Based on EEG.

The recommendations for identifying sleep stages based on the interpretation of electrophysiological signals (electroencephalography [EEG], electro-oculography [EOG], and electromyography [EMG]), derived from the Rechtschaffen and Kales manual, were published in 2007 at the initiative of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, and regularly updated over years. They offer an important tool to assess objective markers in different types of sleep/wake subjective complaints. With the aims and advantages of simplicity, reproducibility and standardization of practices in research and, most of all, in sleep medicine, they have overall changed little in the way they describe sleep. However, our knowledge on sleep/wake physiology and sleep disorders has evolved since then. High-density electroencephalography and intracranial electroencephalography studies have highlighted local regulation of sleep mechanisms, with spatio-temporal heterogeneity in vigilance states. Progress in the understanding of sleep disorders has allowed the identification of electrophysiological biomarkers better correlated with clinical symptoms and outcomes than standard sleep parameters. Finally, the huge development of sleep medicine, with a demand for explorations far exceeding the supply, has led to the development of alternative studies, which can be carried out at home, based on a smaller number of electrophysiological signals and on their automatic analysis. In this perspective article, we aim to examine how our description of sleep has been constructed, has evolved, and may still be reshaped in the light of advances in knowledge of sleep physiology and the development of technical recording and analysis tools. After presenting the strengths and limitations of the classification of sleep stages, we propose to challenge the "EEG-EOG-EMG" paradigm by discussing the physiological signals required for sleep stages identification, provide an overview of new tools and automatic analysis methods and propose avenues for the development of new approaches to describe and understand sleep/wake states.

Alteration of global workspace during loss of consciousness: a study of parietal seizures.

PURPOSE: Loss of consciousness (LOC) in epileptic seizures has a strongly negative impact on quality of life. Recently, we showed that LOC occurring during temporal lobe seizures was correlated with a nonlinear increase of neural synchrony in associative--and particularly parietal--cortices. Whether these mechanisms might be observed in other types of seizures is unknown. This study aimed at investigating the relationship between changes in synchrony and degree of LOC during parietal lobe epilepsy (PLE), a form of epilepsy in which seizures directly involve the parietal associative cortices. METHODS: Ten patients undergoing stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) during presurgical evaluation of PLE were studied. The LOC intensity was scored using the Conscious Seizure Scale (CSS). For each studied seizure (n = 29), interdependencies between signals recorded from six brain regions were estimated as a function of time by using nonlinear regression analysis (h(2) coefficient). KEY FINDINGS: Seizures were divided into three groups according to the CSS scale: group A (no LOC) with a score ≤1, group B (intermediate or partial LOC) with a score ranging from 2 to 5, and group C (maximal LOC) with a score ≥6. The majority of seizures in patients with PLE disclosed significant LOC (17/29, group C). Mean h(2) values were significantly different between the three groups (p = 0.008), the maximal values of synchrony being observed in group C. In addition, a statistically significant nonlinear relationship (p = 0.0021) was found between the h(2) values and the CSS scores, suggesting a threshold effect. SIGNIFICANCE: This study indicates that excess of EEG signal synchrony within associative cortices is likely to be a crucial phenomenon associated with LOC.

Cortico-cortical and thalamo-cortical connectivity during non-REM and REM sleep: Insights from intracranial recordings in humans.

OBJECTIVE: To study changes of thalamo-cortical and cortico-cortical connectivity during wakefulness, non-Rapid Eye Movement (non-REM) sleep, including N2 and N3 stages, and REM sleep, using stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) recording in humans. METHODS: We studied SEEG recordings of ten patients during wakefulness, non-REM sleep and REM sleep, in seven brain regions of interest including the thalamus. We calculated directed and undirected functional connectivity using a measure of non-linear correlation coefficient h2. RESULTS: The thalamus was more connected to other brain regions during N2 stage and REM sleep than during N3 stage during which cortex was more connected than the thalamus. We found two significant directed links: the first from the prefrontal region to the lateral parietal region in the delta band during N3 sleep and the second from the thalamus to the insula during REM sleep. CONCLUSIONS: These results showed that cortico-cortical connectivity is more prominent in N3 stage than in N2 and REM sleep. During REM sleep we found significant thalamo-insular connectivity, with a driving role of the thalamus. SIGNIFICANCE: We found a pattern of cortical connectivity during N3 sleep concordant with antero-posterior traveling slow waves. The thalamus seemed particularly involved as a hub of connectivity during REM sleep.

Focal seizures producing loss of wakefulness without ictal asystole: Does temporal lobe syncope exist?

Focal seizures are frequently associated with alteration of consciousness, mainly of awareness, rather than with complete loss of wakefulness. We aimed to explore whether episodes of complete loss of wakefulness (LOW) could be attributed to focal seizures alone, out of the context of ictal asystole or secondary generalization. From a database of adult patients with refractory, focal epilepsy, evaluated for presurgical work-up we searched for patients having the following criteria: (1) focal epilepsy, and (2) transient loss of consciousness, documented in video EEG or/and video SEEG, characterized by an alteration in the level of wakefulness ("syncope like", LOW), with eye closure, hypotonia and non-reactivity state. Patients with motor signs of secondary generalization and patients with non-epileptic psychogenic seizures were excluded. Fifteen patients with transient ictal LOW during focal seizures were found. Among them, 12 patients had ictal asystole. We found 3 patients who had complete loss of wakefulness during focal seizures, without asystole or documented hypotension. In two patients the episodes were provoked by high frequency stimulation of hippocampus and amygdala. The third patient had LOW appearing during a spontaneous temporal lobe seizure. Syncope semiology without ictal asystole can be attributed to temporal lobe seizures but remains an exceptional phenomenon. A crucial clinical requirement is the exclusion of cardiac arrhythmias, especially asystole.

Safety and efficacy of subcutaneous night-time only apomorphine infusion to treat insomnia in patients with Parkinson's disease (APOMORPHEE): a multicentre, randomised, controlled, double-blind crossover study.

BACKGROUND: Insomnia is a frequent complaint of patients with Parkinson's disease, and it negatively affects quality of life. Drugs that improve both sleep and parkinsonism would be of major benefit to patients with Parkinson's disease-related insomnia. We aimed to test the safety and efficacy of subcutaneous night-time only apomorphine infusion in patients with Parkinson's disease and insomnia. METHODS: We did a randomised, multicentre, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial in 11 expert centres in Parkinson's disease and sleep centres in France. Participants aged 35-90 years with fluctuating Parkinson's disease and moderate to severe insomnia (Insomnia Severity Index score ≥15) were randomly assigned to either first receive night-time subcutaneous apomorphine (up to 5 mg/h) or matching placebo. Randomisation was done using a computer-generated plan in blocks of four, stratified by centre. This first intervention was followed by a 14-night washout period, then crossover to the other intervention. The treatment periods consisted of a 10-night titration phase followed by a 7-night fixed-dose phase. The dose was adjusted during the titration phase on the basis of a daily telephone call assessing sleep quality and treatment tolerability. The primary efficacy endpoint was the difference in Parkinson's disease sleep scale (PDSS) scores from the beginning to the end of each treatment period. Analysis was done on an intention-to-treat basis. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02940912. FINDINGS: Between Jan 31, 2017, and Jan 29, 2021, 46 participants were enrolled. 25 (54%) patients were randomly assigned to receive apomorphine first and 21 (46%) patients to receive placebo first. Mean change in PDSS score was significantly greater with night-time apomorphine infusion (15·18 [SD 24·34]) compared with placebo (5·23 [21·52]; treatment effect 9·95 [95% CI 0·88-19·03]; p=0·041). Adverse events were reported in 25 (54%) participants during the apomorphine period and in 17 (37%) participants during the placebo period (p=0·16). Apomorphine was associated with more frequent dizziness than was placebo (seven [15%] vs 0; p=0·041). INTERPRETATION: Subcutaneous night-time only apomorphine infusion improved sleep disturbances according to difference on PDSS score, with an overall safety profile consistent with previous studies in Parkinson's disease. This treatment might be useful to manage sleep disturbances in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease and moderate to severe insomnia. FUNDING: Orkyn and Aguettant Pharma. TRANSLATION: For the French translation of the abstract see Supplementary Materials section.

The Ictal Signature of Thalamus and Basal Ganglia in Focal Epilepsy: A SEEG Study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the involvement of subcortical regions in human epilepsy by analyzing direct recordings from these regions during epileptic seizures using stereo-EEG (SEEG). METHODS: We studied the SEEG recordings of a large series of patients (74 patients, 157 seizures) with an electrode sampling the thalamus and in some cases also the basal ganglia (caudate nucleus, 22 patients; and putamen, 4 patients). We applied visual analysis and signal quantification methods (Epileptogenicity Index [EI]) to their ictal recordings and compared electrophysiologic with clinical data. RESULTS: We found that in 86% of patients, thalamus was involved during seizures (visual analysis) and 20% showed high values of epileptogenicity (EI >0.3). Basal ganglia may also disclose high values of epileptogenicity (9% in caudate nucleus) but to a lesser degree than thalamus (p < 0.01). We observed different seizure onset patterns including low voltage high frequency activities. We found high values of thalamic epileptogenicity in different epilepsy localizations, including opercular and motor epilepsies. We found no difference between epilepsy etiologies (cryptogenic vs malformation of cortical development, p = 0.77). Thalamic epileptogenicity was correlated with the extension of epileptogenic networks (p = 0.02, ρ 0.32). We found a significant effect (p < 0.05) of thalamic epileptogenicity regarding the postsurgical outcome (higher thalamic EI corresponding to higher probability of surgical failure). CONCLUSIONS: Thalamic involvement during seizures is common in different seizure types. The degree of thalamic epileptogenicity is a possible marker of the epileptogenic network extension and of postsurgical prognosis.

Brain connectivity changes during ictal aggression (a strangulation attempt).

Ictal aggressive behaviour is a rare manifestation of focal seizures. We report an episode of ictal aggression occurring during an intracerebrally recorded seizure (using stereoelectroencephalography) in a patient with drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy. Aggression occurred during the last part of the seizure and was coincident with marked EEG slowing of the frontal regions and persistent ictal activity in the medial temporal lobe. A functional connectivity study (h2 estimation of interdependencies) showed a bilateral massive hypersynchronization between frontal and temporal regions. This case illustrates the occurrence of aggression during imbalance between the electrical activity in the temporal limbic cortex and prefrontal cortex, in agreement with the current neurobiological theories of aggression.

Altered synchrony and loss of consciousness during frontal lobe seizures.

OBJECTIVE: Loss of consciousness (LOC) in frontal lobe epilepsy (FLE) has been rarely specifically studied until now. In this study we evaluated the LOC in a population of patients with FLE and studied the relationship between changes in synchrony and degree of LOC. METHODS: 24 patients undergoing stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) during pre-surgical evaluation of FLE were studied. The LOC intensity was scored using the Consciousness Seizure Scale (CSS). For each studied seizure (n=52), interdependencies between signals recorded from 5 brain regions were estimated as a function of time by using non-linear regression analysis (h(2) coefficient). RESULTS: Seizures were divided into 3 groups according to the CSS scale: group A (no LOC) with a score ⩽2, group B (intermediate or partial LOC) with a score ranging from 3 to 5, and group C (maximal LOC) with a score ⩾6. The majority of seizures in FLE patients disclosed significant LOC, particularly for patients with prefrontal lobe seizures. Mean correlation values were significantly different between groups A and C (p<0.001), the maximal values of synchrony being observed in group C. Differences were significant for interaction affecting the external prefrontal cortex (p=0.004) (p=0.01) and the parietal cortex. In addition, a significant correlation was found between CSS scores and correlations values (h(2)) of the prefrontal and the parietal region but not with the premotor cortex. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that in FLE, prefrontal seizures frequently alter consciousness. As in other focal seizures, LOC appears to be related to changes in synchrony in prefrontal and parietal associative cortices. SIGNIFICANCE: LOC in FLE is frequent and as in other focal epilepsies is related to an alteration of prefrontal-parietal network.

What is the concordance between the seizure onset zone and the irritative zone? A SEEG quantified study.

OBJECTIVE: In focal epilepsies, the accurate delineation of the epileptogenic network is a fundamental step before surgery. For years, the relationship between the interictal epileptic spikes (defining the "irritative zone", IZ) and the sites of seizure initiation (SOZ) has been a matter of debate. METHODS: Our goal was to investigate from intracerebral recordings (stereoelectroencephalography, SEEG) the distribution of interictal epileptic spikes (based on a spike frequency index, SI) and the topography of the SOZ (based on the Epileptogenicity Index, EI) in patients having focal neocortical epilepsies. Thirty-one patients were studied. A total of 539 brain regions were quantified in term of both spike generation (SI) and seizure initiation (EI). RESULTS: We found a 56% (18/32) rate of agreement between maximal EI and maximal SI values. When considering separately patients with focal cortical dysplasia (FCD), the proportion of patients with good concordance was ∼75% (15/20), whereas it was only 33% (4/12) in the non FCD group. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that a significant part of patients have some dissociation between regions showing pronounced spiking activity and those showing high epileptogenicity. e is clinically important. SIGNIFICANCE: For patients with these dissociations, other markers than spiking frequency remain to be investigated. In the FCD group, the good concordance between SI and EI confirms that the mapping of the irritative zone is clinically important.