Transcutaneous vagal nerve stimulatio (t-VNS): An adjunctive treatment option for refractory epilepsy.
Seizure
; 60: 115-119, 2018 Aug.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-29940349
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE:
The aim of this trial was to investigate the efficacy and safety of transcutaneous vagal nerve stimulation (t-VNS) in the palliative treatment of drug resistant epileptic patients ineligible for surgery.METHODS:
Twenty adult patients received four hours of t-VNS per day for six months (T1), followed by a two-month washout period (T2). The frequency and type of seizures recorded at T1 and T2 were compared with those occurring in the three months preceding study entry (T0). Responders (>30% reduction in the total number of seizures) subsequently received two hours of t-VNS per day for further six months (T3). All patients underwent electroencephalography (EEG) and completed the Quality of Life in Epilepsy questionnaire at baseline and T1.RESULTS:
At T1 six patients were considered responders. In these patients, at T3 the average reduction in seizure frequency was 60% compared to T0 (pâ¯=â¯0.043), and 51% compared to T2 (pâ¯=â¯0.043). Responders had more often seizures with falls (5 of 6; 83.3%) compared with non-responders (3 of 14; 21.4%) (pâ¯=â¯0,010) and t-VNS reduced their frequency by a percentage ranging from 47.5 to 100%. There was no change in responders' EEG findings after stimulation. At the end of the trial, three responders continued t-VNS, one implanted VNS.CONCLUSIONS:
t-VNS had no or minimal side effects and significantly reduced seizures in about one third of the enrolled patients. Further studies should be planned to assess whether t-VNS is a suitable tool to predict the efficacy of implanted VNS.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Adolescent
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Adult
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Female
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Humans
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Male
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Middle aged
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2018
Tipo de documento:
Article