Hippocampal volumetry to determine the resection side in patients with intractable non-lesional bilateral temporal lobe epilepsy.

Bilateral Temporal lobe epilepsy (BTLE) cases may result in poor surgical outcomes due to the difficulty in determining/localizing the epileptogenic zone. In this study, we investigated whether hippocampal volume (HV) would be useful for the determination of the best resection side in BTLE. Eighteen cases of BTLE determined by a scalp video electroencephalogram (SVEEG) underwent resection via intracranial electroencephalography (IVEEG). Patients with lesions or semiologically determined focus lateralization were excluded. In addition to SVEEG, an epilepsy protocol magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) including hippocampus fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) and HV, 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET), single-photon emission computed tomography with 123I-iomazenil (IMZ-SPECT), and magnetoencephalography (MEG) were performed for the preoperative evaluation of the lateralization. The resection side was determined based on the IVEEG results, and the seizure outcome at two years postoperatively was classified as either a well-controlled seizure outcome (Engel class I), or residual (classes II-V). We used a Fisher's exact test to compare the concordance between the determination of the epileptic focus by each modality and the resected side where patients achieved a well-controlled seizure outcome. Seizures were well controlled in 9/18 patients after surgery. Eight out of 11 patients (72.7%), in whom the HV results (strongly atrophic side) and the resection side were matched, had well-controlled seizure outcomes (P = 0.0498). The concordance of other presurgical evaluations with the resection side was not significantly related to a well-controlled seizure outcome. HV may be a useful method to determine the optimal resection side of the epileptic focus/foci in cases of suspected BTLE.

Clinical significance of ictal magnetoencephalography in patients undergoing epilepsy surgery.

OBJECTIVE: The significance of ictal magnetoencephalography (MEG) is not well appreciated. We evaluated the relationships between ictal MEG, MRI, intracranial electroencephalography (ICEEG), surgery and postoperative seizure outcome. METHODS: A total of 45 patients (46 cases) with ictal MEG who underwent epilepsy surgery was included. We examined the localization of each modality, surgical resection area and seizure freedom after surgery. RESULTS: Twenty-one (45.7%) out of 46 cases were seizure-free at more than 6 months follow-up. Median duration of postoperative follow-up was 16.5 months. The patients in whom ictal, interictal single equivalent current dipole (SECD) and MRI lesion localization were completely included in the resection had a higher chance of being seizure-free significantly (p < 0.05). Concordance between ictal and interictal SECD localizations was significantly associated with seizure-freedom. Concordance between MRI lesion and ictal SECD, concordance between ictal ICEEG and ictal and interictal SECD, as well as concordance between ictal ICEEG and MRI lesion were significantly associated with seizure freedom. CONCLUSIONS: Ictal MEG can contribute useful information for delineating the resection area in epilepsy surgery. SIGNIFICANCE: Resection should include ictal, interictal SECDs and MRI lesion localization, when feasible. Concordant ictal and interictal SECDs on MEG can be a favorable predictor of seizure freedom.

Characterization of cortical activity in juvenile myoclonic epilepsy by gradient magnetic field topography.

OBJECTIVE: Gradient magnetic field topography (GMFT) illustrates the magnetic field gradients of epileptic spike or polyspikes (S/PS) activities on a volume-rendered brain surface. The purpose is to characterize cortical activation in juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME). METHODS: We compared interictal S/PS activities in 10 patients with JME to five patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS). We defined areas with gradients exceeding 300fT/cm as activated zones (AZs) on GMFT. We defined the hemisphere where an AZ initially appeared as the "preceding hemisphere". We localized the foci where AZs arose and evaluated their spatiotemporal changes. RESULTS: In JME, the localization of S/PS in the preceding hemisphere was frontal in 18 activities (28%), parietal in 10 (15%), and frontal/parietal in 33 (51%), and in the contralateral hemisphere it was frontal in 14 (32%), parietal in 6 (14%), and frontal/parietal in 19 (43%). In LGS, AZs arose in every lobe of the brain. The median interhemispheric time difference was 7 ms (range: 0-20) in JME, which was significantly shorter than the 19 ms (1-50) observed among patients with LGS (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: AZs are localized within the bilateral frontal and parietal regions. AZs arose serially from foci with small time differences. SIGNIFICANCE: These results are consistent with regional network involvement in JME.

Neural Sources of Vagus Nerve Stimulation-Induced Slow Cortical Potentials.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated neuronal sources of slow cortical potentials (SCPs) evoked during vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) in patients with epilepsy who underwent routine electroencephalography (EEG) after implantation of the device. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed routine clinical EEG from 24 patients. There were 5 to 26 trains of VNS during EEG. To extract SCPs from the EEG, a high-frequency filter of 0.2 Hz was applied. These EEG epochs were averaged and used for source analyses. The averaged waveforms for each patient and their grand average were subjected to multidipole analysis. Patients with at least 50% seizure frequency reduction were considered responders. Findings from EEG analysis dipole were compared with VNS responses. RESULTS: VNS-induced focal SCPs whose dipoles were estimated to be located in several cortical areas including the medial prefrontal cortex, postcentral gyrus, and insula, with a significantly higher frequency in patients with a good VNS response than in those with a poor response. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggested that some VNS-induced SCPs originating from the so-called vagus afferent network are related to the suppression of epileptic seizures.

Impact of catheter contact angle on lesion formation and durability of pulmonary vein isolation.

PURPOSE: This study is aimed to evaluate the impact of catheter contact angle on lesion formation and durability of pulmonary vein isolation (PVI). METHODS: Both in vitro experiment and retrospective observational study were conducted. For in vitro experiment, radiofrequency lesions were created on explanted swine hearts in three different catheter contact angles (0°, 45°, and 90°). In the retrospective observational study, we assessed patients who had undergone repeat catheter ablation due to atrial fibrillation recurrence after initial PVI. When pulmonary vein (PV) reconnection was observed, we analyzed the previous ablation points within and without the gap area. The gap areas were where ablation had changed the PV activation sequence or eliminated the PV potential in the repeat session. RESULTS: In the in vitro experiment, lesion width was the smallest (5.3 ± 0.4 mm) in perpendicular contact compared to 0° (vs 5.8 ± 0.5 mm, p = 0.040) and 45° (vs 6.4 ± 0.4 mm, p < 0.001). In the retrospective observational study, we assessed 666 tags of 16 patients with PV reconnections, and 60 tags were in the gap area. Tags in the gap area had longer interlesion distance (odds ratio [OR] 1.49, p < 0.001), greater contact force variability (OR 1.03, p = 0.008), and higher rate of perpendicular contact (OR 3.26, p < 0.001) on multivariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Perpendicular contact was associated with a smaller lesion and higher rate of PV reconnection.

Comparison of seizure outcomes and ADL recovery period after total or anterior corpus callosotomy in adolescent and young adults with drop attacks and severe mental retardation.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate seizure outcomes and postoperative neurologic complications, with an emphasis on the recovery period of activities of daily living (ADL) between anterior partial corpus callosotomy (ACC) and total corpus callosotomy (TCC) in adolescent and young adults with drop attacks and severe mental retardation. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of consecutive patients with intractable epilepsy who underwent corpus callosotomy (CC) for drop attacks between 2010 and 2019 in the Department of Neurosurgery, Hiroshima University hospital, with a minimum follow-up of one year. Inclusion criteria of this study were 1) age at surgery: 11-39 years, 2) preoperative intelligence quotient <35, and 3) preoperative Barthel index (BI) ≥30. Postoperative full ADL recovery was defined as complete recovery to the preoperative BI score. We compared the postoperative days required for 1) recovery of oral intake ability, 2) discharge from our hospital, 3) returning home from any hospital, 4) returning home with full ADL recovery, and 5) seizure outcomes in patients with ACC versus those with one-stage TCC. RESULTS: Ten patients with ACC and 14 patients with one-stage TCC met the inclusion criteria. The period for returning home with full ADL recovery was a median of 15 days (range 9-45 days) after ACC, while the median was 21.5 days (range 10-62 days) after one-stage TCC (p = 0.2904). Although there was a tendency for the ADL recovery period to be longer after one-stage TCC, there were no statistically significant differences in any category of ADL recovery period. Eleven of 14 (78.6 %) patients who received a one-stage TCC showed favorable seizure outcomes, with drop attack cessation, which was significantly better than 1 of 10 (10 %) patients with ACC (p = 0.0009). CONCLUSIONS: From the viewpoint of postoperative seizure outcomes and ADL recovery period, one-stage TCC is preferred to ACC for adolescent and young adults with severe mental retardation.

The feasibility and value of extraoperative and adjuvant intraoperative stereoelectroencephalography in rolandic and perirolandic epilepsies.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to illustrate the feasibility and value of extra- and intraoperative stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) in patients who underwent resection in rolandic and perirolandic regions. METHODS: The authors retrospectively reviewed all consecutive patients with at least 1 year of postoperative follow-up who underwent extra- and intraoperative SEEG monitoring between January 2015 and January 2017. RESULTS: Four patients with pharmacoresistant rolandic and perirolandic focal epilepsy were identified, who underwent conventional extraoperative invasive SEEG evaluations followed by adjuvant intraoperative SEEG recordings. Conventional extraoperative SEEG evaluations demonstrated ictal and interictal epileptiform activities involving eloquent rolandic and perirolandic cortical areas in all patients. Following extraoperative monitoring, patients underwent preplanned staged resections guided by simultaneous and continuous adjuvant intraoperative SEEG monitoring. Resections, guided by electrode contacts of interest in 3D boundaries, were performed while continuous real-time electrographic data from SEEG recordings were obtained. Staged approaches of resections were performed until there was intraoperative resolution of synchronous rolandic/perirolandic cortex epileptic activities. All patients in the cohort achieved complete seizure freedom (Engel class IA) during the follow-up period ranging from 18 to 50 months. Resection resulted in minimal neurological deficit; 3 patients experienced transient, distal plantar flexion weakness (mild foot drop). CONCLUSIONS: The seizure and functional outcome results of this highly preselected group of patients testifies to the feasibility and demonstrates the value of the combined benefits of both intra- and extraoperative SEEG recordings when resecting the rolandic and perirolandic areas. The novel hybrid method allows a more refined and precise identification of the epileptogenic zone. Consequently, tailored resections can be performed to minimize morbidity as well as to achieve adequate seizure control.

Secondary epileptogenesis on gradient magnetic-field topography correlates with seizure outcomes after vagus nerve stimulation.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the correlation between secondary unilateral or bilateral spreading on gradient magnetic-field topography (GMFT) before and after vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), and postoperative seizure outcomes. METHODS: We analyzed pre- and post-VNS magnetoencephalography (MEG) in 15 patients with VNS implants. We applied McHugh classification to evaluate seizure outcomes. GMFT visualized the spatiotemporal spread of the gradient magnetic field from MEG (>300 fT/cm) before and after the spike peak. We compared the proportion of bilaterally spreading (PBS) MEG spikes and seizure outcomes. We also compared the interhemispheric time difference (ITD) between patients with and without corpus callosotomy. RESULTS: We allocated patients with favorable seizure outcomes of class I and II to group A (9 patients) and poor outcomes of class III-V to group B (6 patients). The number of post-VNS MEG spikes was significantly reduced compared to pre-VNS MEG spikes in group A, but not in group B. Group A showed significantly higher preoperative PBS than group B. Postoperative ITD significantly decreased in 5 patients who underwent corpus callosotomy compared to 10 patients without. CONCLUSION: GMFT can detect the inter- and intrahemispheric spreading of spikes with high spatiotemporal resolution on the brain surface. Frequent interictal MEG spikes propagating bilaterally on GMFT may reflect a favorable seizure outcome after VNS. GMFT can identify dependent secondary epileptogenic spikes responding to VNS, which may be used to control generalized seizures in a subset of patients with pharmaco-resistant epilepsy.

Safety and efficacy of uninterrupted treatment with edoxaban or warfarin during the peri-procedural period of catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation.

BACKGROUND: The real-world safety and efficacy of uninterrupted anticoagulation treatment with edoxaban (EDX) or warfarin (WFR) during the peri-procedural period of catheter ablation (CA) for atrial fibrillation (AF) are yet to be investigated. METHODS: We conducted a two-center experience, observational study to retrospectively investigate consecutive patients who underwent CA for AF and received EDX or WFR. We examined the incidence of thromboembolic and bleeding complications during the peri-procedural period. RESULTS: The EDX and WFR groups included 153 and 103 patients, respectively (total: 256 patients). Demise or thromboembolic events did not occur in either of the groups. The incidence of major bleeding in the EDX and WFR groups was 0.7% and 2.9%, respectively. The total incidence of major/minor bleeding in the EDX and WFR groups was 7.8% and 8.7%, respectively. Of note, the incidence of bleeding complications in the uninterrupted WFR strategy group was markedly high in patients with an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) <30 (75%) or a HAS-BLED score ≥3 (60%). Patients with eGFR ≥30 and a HAS-BLED score ≤2 had a lower incidence of bleeding (<10%), regardless of the administered anticoagulation drug (EDX or WFR). CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed the safety and efficacy of uninterrupted anticoagulation therapy using EDX or WFR in real-world patients undergoing CA for AF. Patients with severely impaired renal function and/or a higher bleeding risk during uninterrupted therapy with WFR were at a prominent risk of bleeding. Therefore, particular attention should be paid in the treatment of these patients.

Localization value of subclinical seizures on scalp video-EEG in epilepsy presurgical evaluation.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the localization value and prognostic significance of subclinical seizures (SCSs) on scalp video-electroencephalography monitoring (VEEG) in comparison to clinical seizures (CSs) in patients who had epilepsy surgery. METHODS: We included 123 consecutive patients who had SCSs and CSs during scalp-VEEG evaluation. All patients had subsequent epilepsy surgery and at least 1-year follow-up. Concordance between SCSs and CSs was summarized into five categories: complete, partial, overlapping, no concordance, or indeterminate. Using the same scheme, we analyzed the relationship between resection and SCS/CS localizations. The concordance measures, along with demographic, electroclinical, and other presurgical evaluation data, were evaluated for their associations with postoperative seizure outcome. RESULTS: Sixty-nine patients (56.1%) had seizure-free outcome at 1-year follow-up. In 68 patients (55.3%), the localizations of SCSs and CSs were completely concordant. Multivariate logistic analysis showed that complete SCS/CS concordance was independently associated with seizure-free outcome at 1-year (P = .020) and 2-year follow-up (P = .040). In the temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) seizure-free group, SCS localization was completely contained within the resection in 44.4% and CS localization was completely contained within the resection in 41.7%; in the extratemporal lobe epilepsy (ETLE) seizure-free group, SCS localization was completely contained within the resection in 54.5% and CS localization was completely contained within the resection in 57.6%. SIGNIFICANCE: Complete concordance between CS and SCS localization is a positive prognostic factor for 1-year and 2-year postoperative seizure-free outcome. Localization value of SCSs on scalp VEEG is similar to that of CSs for TLE and ETLE. Although SCSs cannot replace CSs, localization information from SCSs should not be ignored.

Preservation of Memory Despite Unresected Contralateral Hippocampal Volume Loss After Resection of Hippocampal Sclerosis in Seizure-Free Patients.

OBJECTIVE: To determine postoperative long-term changes of hippocampal volume (HV) correlating with cognitive functions in patients who underwent surgery for hippocampal sclerosis with postoperative freedom from seizures. METHODS: We studied 1.5T magnetic resonance imaging before and after surgery in 24 patients (mean ± SD age, 36.9 ± 11.0 years) with hippocampal sclerosis. We performed serial magnetic resonance imaging at 6 months to 1 year, 1-2 years, 2-3 years, and 3-5 years postoperatively. We compared HVs of 24 patients with HVs of 14 age-matched control subjects. We analyzed correlations between consecutive HVs and seizure duration and age at surgery. We compared consecutive changes in HVs between dominant and nondominant hemispheres with concurrent cognitive functions. RESULTS: Preoperative HVs of unresected contralateral hippocampus were significantly smaller than HVs of control subjects (P < 0.01). Unresected contralateral HV changes compared with preoperative HVs were -3.6% ± 6.9%, -2.3% ± 8.5%, -3.6% ± 10.2% (P < 0.05), and -5.0% ± 9.5% (P < 0.05) at consecutive postoperative periods. Largest change in HVs at 3-5 years was significantly correlated with older age at surgery (P < 0.05). Unresected contralateral dominant 14 HVs remained consistently smaller than nondominant 10 HVs up to 5 years with statistical significance (P < 0.05). Verbal memory was preserved in 14 patients with unresected contralateral smaller dominant hippocampus. CONCLUSIONS: In seizure-free patients after hippocampal sclerosis resection , unresected contralateral HV significantly declined with older age at surgery. Visual memory was preserved regardless of side and volume loss. Despite significantly reduced HVs, verbal memory was preserved with the unresected contralateral dominant hippocampus. Earlier surgical intervention may have lower potential risk for memory decline secondary to postoperative HV loss.

Anti-seizure effect and neuronal activity change in the genetic-epileptic model rat with acute and chronic vagus nerve stimulation.

BACKGROUND: VNS showed time-dependent anti-seizure effect. However, the precise mechanism of VNS in acute and chronic anti-seizure effect has not been fully elucidated. Noda epileptic rat (NER) is genetic epilepsy model rat which exhibits spontaneous generalized tonic-clonic seizure (GTC) approximately once per 30 h and frequent dialeptic seizure (DS). We performed acute and chronic VNS on NER to focus on the acute and chronic anti-epileptic effect and neuronal activity change by VNS. METHODS: We performed acute VNS (2 h) on 22 NERs (VNS, n = 11, control, n = 11), then subsequently administered chronic (4 weeks) VNS on 10 of 22 NERs (VNS n = 5, control n = 5). We evaluated the acute and chronic anti-seizure effects of VNS on GTC and DS by behavioral and electroencephalographical observation (2 h every week). We carried out double immunofluorescence for biomarkers of short-term (c-Fos) and long-term (ΔFosB) neuronal activation to map regions in the brain that were activated by acute (VNS n = 6, control n = 6) or chronic VNS (VNS n = 5, control n = 5). Furthermore, we performed chronic VNS (4 w) on 12 NERs (VNS n = 6, control n = 6) with long-term observation (8 h a day, 5d per week) to obtain an adequate number of GTCs to elucidate the time dependent anti-epileptic effect on GTC. RESULTS: Acute VNS treatment reduced GTC seizure frequency and total duration of the DS. Chronic VNS resulted in a time-dependent reduction of DS frequency and duration. However, chronic VNS did not show time-dependent reduction of GTC frequency. There were significant c-Fos expressions in the central medial nucleus (CM), mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MDM), locus coeruleus (LC), and nucleus of solitary tract (NTS) after acute VNS. And there were significant ΔFosB expressions in the lateral septal nucleus (LSV), medial septal nucleus (MSV), MDM, and pontine reticular nucleus caudal (PnC) after chronic VNS. Any decrease in frequency of GTCs by chronic VNS could not be confirmed even with long-term observation. CONCLUSION: We confirmed acute VNS significantly reduced the frequency of GTC and duration of DS. Chronic VNS decreased the frequency and duration of DS in a time-dependent manner. The brainstem and midline thalamus were activated after acute and chronic VNS. The forebrain was activated only after chronic VNS.

Multimodal noninvasive evaluation in MRI-negative operculoinsular epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE: Presurgical evaluation of patients with operculoinsular epilepsy and negative MRI presents major challenges. Here the authors examined the yield of noninvasive modalities such as voxel-based morphometric MRI postprocessing, FDG-PET, subtraction ictal SPECT coregistered to MRI (SISCOM), and magnetoencephalography (MEG) in a cohort of patients with operculoinsular epilepsy and negative MRI. METHODS: Twenty-two MRI-negative patients were included who had focal ictal onset from the operculoinsular cortex on intracranial EEG, and underwent focal resection limited to the operculoinsular cortex. MRI postprocessing was applied to presurgical T1-weighted volumetric MRI using a morphometric analysis program (MAP). Individual and combined localization yields of MAP, FDG-PET, MEG, and SISCOM were compared with the ictal onset location on intracranial EEG. Seizure outcomes were reported at 1 year and 2 years (when available) using the Engel classification. RESULTS: Ten patients (45.5%, 10/22) had operculoinsular abnormalities on MAP; 5 (23.8%, 5/21) had operculoinsular hypometabolism on FDG-PET; 4 (26.7%, 4/15) had operculoinsular hyperperfusion on SISCOM; and 6 (30.0%, 6/20) had an MEG cluster (3 tight, 3 loose) within the operculoinsular cortex. The highest yield of a 2-test combination was 59.1%, seen with MAP and SISCOM, followed by 54.5% with MAP and FDG-PET, and also 54.5% with MAP and MEG. The highest yield of a 3-test combination was 68.2%, seen with MAP, MEG, and SISCOM. The yield of the 4-test combination remained at 68.2%. When all other tests were negative or nonlocalizing, unique information was provided by MAP in 5, MEG in 1, SISCOM in 2, and FDG-PET in none of the patients. One-year follow-up was available in all patients, and showed 11 Engel class IA, 4 class IB, 4 class II, and 3 class III/IV. Two-year follow-up was available in 19 patients, and showed 9 class IA, 3 class IB, 1 class ID, 3 class II, and 3 class III/IV. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the individual and combined values of multiple noninvasive modalities for the evaluation of nonlesional operculoinsular epilepsy. The 3-test combination of MAP, MEG, and SISCOM represented structural, interictal, and ictal localization information, and constituted the highest yield. MAP showed the highest yield of unique information when other tests were negative or nonlocalizing.

Application of MRI Post-processing in Presurgical Evaluation of Non-lesional Cingulate Epilepsy.

Background and Purpose: Surgical management of patients with cingulate epilepsy (CE) is highly challenging, especially when the MRI is non-lesional. We aimed to use a voxel-based MRI post-processing technique, implemented in a morphometric analysis program (MAP), to facilitate detection of subtle epileptogenic lesions in CE, thereby improving surgical evaluation of patients with CE with non-lesional MRI by visual inspection. Methods: Included in this retrospective study were 9 patients with CE (6 with negative 3T MRI and 3 with subtly lesional 3T MRI) who underwent surgery and became seizure-free or had marked seizure improvement with at least 1-year follow-up. MRI post-processing was applied to pre-surgical T1-weighted volumetric sequence using MAP. The MAP finding was then coregistered and compared with other non-invasive imaging tests (FDG-PET, SPECT and MEG), intracranial EEG ictal onset, surgery location and histopathology. Results: Single MAP+ abnormalities were found in 6 patients, including 3 patients with negative MRI, and 3 patients with subtly lesional MRI. Out of these 6 MAP+ patients, 4 patients became seizure-free after complete resection of the MAP+ abnormalities; 2 patients didn't become seizure-free following laser ablation that only partially overlapped with the MAP+ abnormalities. All MAP+ foci were concordant with intracranial EEG ictal onset (when performed). The localization value of FDG-PET, SPECT and MEG was limited in this cohort. FCD was identified in all patients' surgical pathology except for two cases of laser ablation with no tissue available. Conclusion: MAP provided helpful information for identifying subtle epileptogenic abnormalities in patients with non-lesional cingulate epilepsy. MRI postprocessing should be considered to add to the presurgical evaluation test battery of non-lesional cingulate epilepsy.

Application of Rubber Band with Hooks on Both Ends for Vagus Nerve Stimulator Implantation.

BACKGROUND: Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is a valuable therapeutic option for many types of drug-resistant epilepsy. Muscle hooks and carotid endarterectomy rings have been used for cervical delamination preceding the implantation of stimulation electrodes. The attachment on both sides of a rubber band of Kamiyama-style hanging needles, as are used for scalp and dural retraction during craniotomy, yields a useful tool for VNS implantation. Here we report our experience with this method. METHODS: We present our method using a rubber band plus hooks and a review of 21 consecutive patients who underwent VNS implantation using our rubber band-plus-hooks method. RESULTS: None of the 21 patients experienced intraoperative or perioperative complications. Hooks placed in connective tissue around the common carotid artery and jugular vein raised the vagus nerve by elevating the carotid sheath. A single surgeon was able to perform all cervical manipulations under a surgical microscope. The average operation time in this series of 21 patients was 137 minutes. CONCLUSIONS: The use of hooks attached to both sides of a rubber band rendered VNS implantation safer by lifting the vagus nerve and standardizing the procedure.

We could predict good responders to vagus nerve stimulation: A surrogate marker by slow cortical potential shift.

OBJECTIVE: We investigated whether vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) induces a positive shift of slow cortical potentials (SCPs) in patients with >50% seizure reduction (responders) but not in non-responders. METHODS: We analyzed routine clinical electroencephalograms (EEGs) from 24 patients who were undergoing seizure treatment by VNS. The patients were divided into 2 groups by hardware time constant (TC) of EEG: the TC 10-s group (10 patients) and TC 2-s group (14 patients). We compared SCPs at 5 electrodes (Cz and adjacent ones) between the 2 states of VNS: during stimulation and between stimulations. Seizure reduction was independently judged. Correlation between SCP (positivity or not) and seizure reduction (>50% or not) was estimated. RESULTS: In the TC 10-s group, the correlation between SCP and seizure reduction was significant (p<0.05) (i.e., both good results in 4 and both negative results in 5). In TC 2-s group, the correlation between SCP and seizure reduction was not significant (p=0.209). CONCLUSIONS: A positive shift of SCP recorded by using a TC of 10s could be a surrogate marker for VNS response. SIGNIFICANCE: SCP could be a biomarker of good responders to VNS.

Effective withdrawal of antiepileptic drugs in premonitoring admission to capture seizures during limited video-EEG monitoring.

Objective: Withdrawal of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) is commonly applied to capture seizures in video-EEG (vEEG) monitoring for patients with infrequent but intractable seizures. Because of the half-life of AEDs, AED withdrawal during only vEEG tends to be inadequate to provoke seizures within the vEEG admission. We hypothesize that prewithdrawal of long-half-life AEDs in premonitoring admission (PMA) is safe and effective to capture seizures in the limited time of vEEG. We determined the effect of half-life on the interval between AED withdrawal and seizure occurrence. Methods: We collected 87 patients with three criteria: (1) seizure occurrence ≤3 per month; (2) AEDs ≥2; (3) AED withdrawal during their admission, among 126 consecutive patients who underwent vEEG in the Department of Neurosurgery, Hiroshima University Hospital between 2011 and 2014. We divided patients into two groups on the basis of half-life of AED: Group A (23 patients) with phenobarbital (PB) and/or zonisamide (ZNS); Group B (64 patients) with other AEDs. In Group A, PB and ZNS were withdrawn during 4-day PMA before vEEG started. Further AED withdrawal was performed during vEEG, depending on the seizure occurrence. Results: The number of AEDs on admission was significantly higher in Group A (2-6, 3.5 ± 0.9; range, mean ±SD) than in Group B (2-5, 2.8 ± 0.8) (p < 0.01). All 23 Group A patients and 13 (20%) Group B patients underwent AED withdrawal during PMA. Seizures occurred during PMA in two patients in both Group A (9%) and Group B (15%). The first seizure occurred significantly longer after the start of withdrawal in Group A (6.1 ± 2.0 days) than in Group B (2.8 ± 1.3 days) (p < 0.01). Seizures were equally captured between both groups: 96% in Group A and 92% in Group B during vEEG. Significance: For epilepsy patients who are treated with PB and/or ZNS, we recommend the planning of AED withdrawal during PMA before the start of vEEG to succeed in capturing seizures during the limited time of vEEG monitoring.

Combined surgical intervention with vagus nerve stimulation following corpus callosotomy in patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) is a drug-resistant pediatric epilepsy characterized by multiple seizure types, including drop attacks (DAs). Palliative procedures such as corpus callosotomy (CC) and vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) may be effective for adequate seizure control in LGS patients who are not candidates for resective surgery. We evaluated the efficacy of the combination of these two procedures for LGS-related seizures. METHOD: Ten patients with LGS (age 3-30 years at VNS implantation) underwent CC and subsequent VNS. We evaluated surgical outcomes, particularly with respect to the efficacy of VNS on seizure reduction rates for different residual seizure types after CC. We compared clinical parameters, including sex, age, seizure duration, history, MRI findings, extent of CC, number of antiepileptic drugs, and neuropsychological states, between VNS responders and non-responders to predict satisfactory seizure outcomes with respect to residual seizures after CC. FINDINGS: VNS was effective for residual seizures regardless of seizure type (except for DAs) after CC in patients with LGS. Six of ten (60%) patients had a satisfactory seizure outcome (≥50% seizure reduction) for all residual seizure types after VNS. Two of ten (20%) patients were seizure-free at 12 months post-VNS. Even those patients that were non-responders, with respect to all seizures including DAs, after prior CC showed favorable responses to subsequent VNS. Compared to VNS, excellent seizure outcomes for DAs were achieved after CC in seven of nine (77.8%) patients with DAs. Among the clinical parameters, only conversation ability before VNS was significantly different between responders and non-responders (p = 0.033). CONCLUSION: Combined VNS and prior CC produced satisfactory seizure outcomes in LGS patients with different seizure types, including DAs. Even non-responders to prior CC responded to subsequent VNS for residual seizures, except for DAs. There is a greater likelihood that these procedures may be more feasible in patients who possess conversation ability prior to VNS.

Novel Software for Performing Leksell Stereotactic Surgery without the Use of Printing Films: Technical Note.

Hospitals in Japan have recently begun to employ the DICOM viewer system on desktop or laptop monitors. However, conventional embedding surgery for deep-brain stimulation with the Leksell stereotactic system (LSS) requires printed X-ray films for defining the coordination, coregistration of actual surgical films with the reference coordinates, and validation of the needle trajectories. While just performing these procedures on desktop or laptop monitors, the authors were able to develop novel software to facilitate complete digital manipulation with the Leksell frame without printing films. In this study, we validated the practical use of LSS, and benefit of this software in the Takanobashi Central Hospital and Kagoshima University Hospital.