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Sleep but not hyperventilation increases the sensitivity of the EEG in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the relative impact of 3 and 5 min of hyperventilation (HV) and different sleep stages on the sensitivity of the interictal EEG in focal epilepsy. METHODS: We examined 20 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE, 85%) or extratemporal epilepsy during EEG-monitoring. We compared 6 min EEG (12 epochs of 30s) during/after each: (a) waking; (b) 5 or 3 min of HV; (c) sleep stages 1, 2, 3/4 and REM regarding the frequency of epileptiform discharges (ED). The Wilcoxon matched pairs signed rank test was used. The main endpoint was the comparison of 5 min of HV with sleep stage 2. RESULTS: During sleep stage 2, ED were more frequent than during/after 5 min of HV (P=0.002). Compared to the waking EEG, all NREM-sleep stages activated ED. Sleep stage 2 was associated with the strongest activation. There was no difference between the waking state and REM-sleep. Compared to the waking EEG, neither 3 nor 5 min of HV showed an activation of ED. CONCLUSION: In patients with TLE, sleep stage 2 shows a significantly higher sensitivity for ED than 5 min of HV. Compared to the waking EEG, HV showed no activating effect on ED. These results suggest that in patients with the clinical diagnosis of TLE (and possibly other focal epilepsies) measures to record sleep stage 2 (such as sleep deprivation) should be increased whereas HV appears to be dispensable in this setting.

Adult↗

Distinct electrophysiological alterations in dentate gyrus versus CA1 glial cells from epileptic humans with temporal lobe sclerosis.

Previous studies have characterized the electrophysiological properties of astrocytes in the CA1 region of hippocampi resected from patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). However, the properties of hilar astrocytes from such patients have not been studied although astrocytes display regional heterogeneity and a non-uniform response to injury. Thus, we performed patch-clamp recordings of putative astrocytes in hilar and CA1 regions of surgically removed epileptic hippocampi with and without sclerosis (mesial TLE, MTLE patients, and paradoxical TLE, PTLE patients, respectively), and non-epileptic, non-sclerotic hippocampi (tumor patients). Our data show that the current profile of hilar astrocytes undergoes significant changes in MTLE but not in PTLE or tumor hippocampi. In particular, inwardly rectifying K(+) (K(IR)) and outwardly rectifying K(+) currents were reduced, inward Na(+) currents and membrane resistances were increased in putative astrocytes from MLTE cases compared to PTLE and tumor cases. Because the conductance of K(IR) channels in cell-attached patches (approximately 34pS) from MTLE tissue was not altered, a reduction in the number of K(IR) channels likely accounts for the decrease in whole-cell K(IR) conductance. Presumed astrocytes in the CA1 region from each patient group displayed intercellular coupling and a passive current profile; these characteristics were never observed in hilar glial cells. No apparent changes in the current profile of coupled CA1 glial cells could be detected between MTLE, PTLE and tumor tissues. Additionally, CA1 glial cells expressed a high density of 34pS K(IR) channels. These data suggest that K(+) buffering via K(IR) channels may be functionally compromised in hilar astrocytes of epileptic and sclerotic (MTLE) human hippocampi. By contrast, CA1 astrocytes retained their intercellular coupling and K(IR) channel expression necessary for K(+) buffering.

Dentate Gyrus↗

Lack of association between variations in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene and temporal lobe epilepsy.

Recently, an association between the C240T polymorphism in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene and partial epilepsy was demonstrated in a Japanese population. In this study we attempted to replicate the initial finding in a patient-control population of European ancestry and in addition tested whether the functional Val66Met polymorphism is associated with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). Genotypes of 151 TLE patients and 189 controls did not differ significantly for either of the variations. Results suggest that neither of the studied polymorphisms are strong susceptibility factors for TLE in this sample of individuals of European ancestry.

Adult↗

Attention and psychomotor speed decline in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy: a longitudinal study.

PURPOSE: To assess the possible cognitive alterations in epilepsy patients compared with controls over 5 years, and to investigate the clinical variables mainly implied in mental impairment. METHODS: In our longitudinal single-center study, 50 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and 50 controls were administered the same battery of comprehensive neuropsychological tests at baseline and after 5 years. RESULTS: TLE patients showed a significant impairment in attention and psychomotor speed compared with controls after 5 years, while the other cognitive domains did not exhibit any important changes. This worsening was mainly related to the duration of epilepsy, the age at onset, a history of tonic-clonic seizures and a low educational level. CONCLUSIONS: We believe that tapping the attention and psychomotor speed decline in TLE patients should be considered relevant for future research, in order to achieve a deeper understanding of the cognitive dimensions of this field.

Adult↗

Epileptogenesis and chronic seizures in a mouse model of temporal lobe epilepsy are associated with distinct EEG patterns and selective neurochemical alterations in the contralateral hippocampus.

Major aspects of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) can be reproduced in mice following a unilateral injection of kainic acid into the dorsal hippocampus. This treatment induces a non-convulsive status epilepticus and acute lesion of CA1, CA3c and hilar neurons, followed by a latent phase with ongoing ipsilateral neuronal degeneration. Spontaneous focal seizures mark the onset of the chronic phase. In striking contrast, the ventral hippocampus and the contralateral side remain structurally unaffected and seizure-free. In this study, functional and neurochemical alterations of the contralateral side were studied to find candidate mechanisms underlying the lack of a mirror focus in this model of TLE. A quantitative analysis of simultaneous, bilateral EEG recordings revealed a significant decrease of theta oscillations ipsilaterally during the latent phase and bilaterally during the chronic phase. Furthermore, the synchronization of bilateral activity, which is very high in control, was strongly reduced already during the latent phase and the decrease was independent of recurrent seizures. Immunohistochemical analysis performed in the contralateral hippocampus of kainate-treated mice revealed reduced calbindin-labeling of CA1 pyramidal cells; down-regulation of CCK-8 and up-regulation of NPY-labeling in mossy fibers; and a redistribution of galanin immunoreactivity. These changes collectively might limit neuronal excitability in CA1 and dentate gyrus, as well as glutamate release from mossy fiber terminals. Although these functional and neurochemical alterations might not be causally related, they likely reflect long-ranging network alterations underlying the independent evolution of the two hippocampal formations during the development of an epileptic focus in this model of TLE.

Action Potentials↗

Impairment of dentate gyrus neuronal progenitor cell differentiation in a mouse model of temporal lobe epilepsy.

Unilateral intrahippocampal injection of kainic acid (KA) in adult mice induces an epileptic focus replicating major histopathological features of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). In this model, neurogenesis is impaired in the lesioned dentate gyrus, although cell proliferation transiently is increased bilaterally in the subgranular zone (SGZ). To investigate further the relationship between epileptogenesis and neurogenesis, we compared the differentiation of cells born shortly before and after KA injection. Immunohistochemical staining for doublecortin and PSA-NCAM, two markers of young neurons, revealed a rapid downregulation of both markers ipsilaterally, whereas they were increased transiently on the contralateral side. To determine whether KA treatment directly affects neural progenitors in the SGZ, dividing cells were prelabeled with 5'-bromo-2'deoxyuridine (BrdU) treatment before unilateral injection of KA. Double staining with the proliferation marker PCNA showed that prelabeled BrdU cells survived KA exposure and proliferated bilaterally. Unexpectedly, the neuronal differentiation of these cells, as assessed after 2 weeks with doublecortin and NeuN triple-staining, occurred to the same extent as on the contralateral side. Only 5% of pre-labeled BrdU cells were GFAP-positive within the lesion. Therefore, SGZ progenitor cells committed to a neuronal phenotype before KA treatment complete their differentiation despite the rapid down-regulation of doublecortin and PSA-NCAM. These findings suggest impaired fate commitment and/or early differentiation of proliferating cells in the lesioned dentate gyrus. Loss of neurogenesis in this TLE model likely reflects an irreversible alteration of the SGZ germinal niche during development of the epileptic focus and may therefore be relevant for human TLE.

Analysis of Variance↗

Characterization of multiple lineages of Tc1-like elements within the genome of the amphibian Xenopus tropicalis.

We have used genomic sequencing data extracted from the first assembly of the Xenopus tropicalis genome combined with a degenerated PCR approach to identify multiple lineages of Tc1 related transposable elements. Full-length elements were isolated in each lineage and were characterized. Most of them exhibit the typical characteristics of Tc1-like elements (TLEs). An open reading frame (ORF) encoding a 340-350 aa transposase containing a [D, D(34)E] signature was found as well as conserved inverted terminal repeats (ITRs) at each extremities. These ITRs could vary in length, depending on the TLE lineage. These new TLEs were named Eagle, Froggy, Jumpy, Maya, Xeminos, XtTXr and XtTXz. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that their closest relatives are present in the genomes of actinopterygian and amphibian. Interestingly, Maya and Xeminos share remarkable characteristics. Maya contains a [D,D(36)E] motif but is not related to any described TLE so far. Xeminos is the first vertebrate TLE strongly related to an invertebrate lineage. Finally, we have identified for most of these TLEs, copies containing an intact transposase ORF suggesting that these elements may still be active.

Amino Acid Motifs↗

Minimally invasive esophagectomy: thoracoscopic mobilization of the esophagus and mediastinal lymphadenectomy in prone position--experience of 130 patients.

BACKGROUND: To evaluate outcomes after minimally invasive or thoracolaparoscopic esophagectomy (TLE) with thoracoscopic mobilization of the esophagus and mediastinal esophagectomy in prone position. Esophagectomies are being performed increasingly by a minimally invasive route with decreased morbidity and shorter hospital stay compared with conventional esophagectomy. Most series report thoracoscopic mobilization of the esophagus and mediastinal lymphadenectomy in the left lateral position with respiratory complications up to 8% and prolonged operative time, probably because of inadequate stance of the surgeon during the thoracoscopic part. This study shows the potential of the thoracoscopic part of the procedure in prone position to ease these difficulties. STUDY DESIGN: From January 1997 through April 2005, TLE was performed in 130 patients. All patients had histologically proved squamous cell carcinoma of the middle third of the esophagus. Only one (0.77%) patient received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The thoracoscopic part of the procedure was performed in prone position with excellent ergonomics, translating into less operative time and better respiratory results. We performed a minilaparotomy to retrieve the specimen owing to bulky tumors. Feeding jejunostomy and pyloromyotomy were performed in all patients. RESULTS: There were 102 men and 28 women. Median age was 67.5 years (range 38 to 78 years). There was no conversion to open method. Median ICU stay was 1 day (range 1 to 32 days) and median hospital stay was 8 days (range 4 to 68 days). Perioperative mortality was 1.54% (n = 2). Anastomotic leak rate was 2.31% (n = 3). There was no incidence of tracheal or lung injury and a very low incidence of postoperative pneumonia. At mean followup of 20 months (range 2 to 70 months), stage-specific survival was similar to open and other minimally invasive series. CONCLUSIONS: TLE with thoracoscopic part in prone position is technically feasible, with a low incidence of respiratory complications and less operative time required. It provides comparable outcomes with other techniques of minimally invasive esophagectomy and most open series. In our experience, we observed a low mortality rate (1.54%), hospital stay of 8 days, and low incidence of postoperative pneumonia. It has the potential to replace conventional and other techniques of minimally invasive esophagectomy.

Adult↗

The presence of polyglucosan bodies in temporal lobe epilepsy: its role and significance.

RATIONALE: Mesial temporal sclerosis (MTS) is an important pathology in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and often associated with good surgical outcome, however prognostic factors for surgical outcome are conflicting. The authors examine seizure outcome after surgery for TLE due to MTS, with focus on the presence of polyglucosan bodies (PGBs), and its relation to the epileptogenic process. METHODS: Records of 44 consecutive patients with intractable TLE who underwent anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL) at JFK medical center between 1994-2001 were reviewed. Details of clinical, electrophysiological evaluation, and outcome were collected. All slides were reviewed for the presence of MTS. In twenty-one patients with MTS, detailed histology of surgical specimens was reviewed and relative concentration of PGBs was assessed. The postoperative follow-up duration ranges between 28-74 months. Surgical outcome was evaluated according to Engel's classification. RESULTS: Data of fourteen females (mean age 32.8 years) and 7 males (mean age 34.2) were analyzed. PBGs were identified in 10 patients (8 females and 2 males). All 10 patients had good surgical outcome, with 6 patients (60%) being seizure free (class 1) and 4 patients as class 2. While 11 patients (6 males and 5 females) with absent PGB, 72.8% had good surgical outcome. Of these, 7 (63.8%) had class 1, 1 patient had class 2, and 3 patients had class 3&4. Assessing several risk factors, the only significant difference between the two groups was epilepsy duration, which was significantly longer in patients with PGBs (P = 0.011). CONCLUSION: The histological presence of PGB is associated with long duration of epilepsy and could be the consequence of epilepsy. Despite prolonged duration of epilepsy, the surgical outcome in PGBs +ve is similar to PGBs -ve patients.

Adolescent↗

MR-based neurological disease classification methodology: application to lateralization of seizure focus in temporal lobe epilepsy.

Classification approaches for neurological diseases tend to concentrate on specific structures such as the hippocampus (HC). The hypothesis for the novel methodology presented in this work is that pathologies will impact large tissue areas with detectable variations of T1-weighted MR signal intensity and registration metrics. The technique is applied to lateralization of seizure focus in 127 patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), in which the site of seizure onset was determined by comprehensive evaluation (69 with left MTL seizure focus (SF) (group "L") and 58 with right SF (group "R")). The method analyses large, non-specific Volumes of Interest (VOI) centered on the left and right medial temporal lobes (MTL) (55 x 82 x 80 voxels) in pre-processed scans aligned in stereotaxic space. Extracted VOIs are linearly and nonlinearly registered to a reference target image. Principal Components Analyses of (i) the normalized intensity and (ii) the trace, a measure of local volume change, are used to generate a multidimensional reference space from a set of 152 neurologically healthy subjects. VOIs from TLE patients, processed in a similar fashion, are projected in this space, and leave-one-out, forward stepwise linear discriminant analysis of the eigencoordinate distributions is used for classification. Following manual MRI volumetric analysis, 80 patients had HC atrophy (group "HA") ipsilateral to the SF (42 with left SF or "LHA", and 38 with right or "RHA"), and the remaining 47 had normal HC volumes (group "HNV") (27 with left SF or "LNV", and 20 with right SF or "RNV"). The automated method was 100% accurate at separating "HA" vs. "HNV", "LHA" vs. "RHA", and "LNV" vs "RNV". It was also 96% accurate at separating "L" vs. "R". Our results indicate that MR data projected in multidimensional feature domains can lateralize SF in epilepsy patients with a high accuracy, irrespective of HC volumes. This single-scan, practical and objective method holds promise for the pre-surgical evaluation of TLE patients.

Adult↗

Sprouting and synaptic reorganization in the subiculum and CA1 region of the hippocampus in acute and chronic models of partial-onset epilepsy.

Repeated seizures induce permanent alterations in the hippocampal circuitry in experimental models and patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). Most studies have concentrated their attention on seizure-induced reorganization of the mossy fiber pathway. The present study examined the projection pathway of the CA1 pyramidal neurons to the subiculum, which is the output of the hippocampal formation in five models of TLE. We examined the laminar pattern of Timm's histochemistry in the stratum lacunosum-moleculare of CA1 in three acute and two chronic models of TLE: intraventricular kainic acid (KA), systemic KA, systemic pilocarpine, chronic electric kindling and chronic i.p. pentylenetetrazol. The laminar pattern of Timm histochemistry in the stratum moleculare of CA1 was permanently remodeled in epileptic models suggesting sprouting of Timm containing terminals from the adjacent stratum lacunosum. Ultrastructural examination confirmed that Timm granules were localized in synaptic terminals. As the source of Timm-labeled terminals in this region was not known, sodium selenite, a selective retrograde tracer for zinc-containing terminals, was iontophoretically injected in vivo in rats exposed to systemic pilocarpine, systemic KA or chronic pentylenetetrazol. The normal projection of CA1 pyramidal neurons to the subiculum is topographically organized in a lamellar fashion. In normal rats, the extent of the injection site (terminals) and the retrogradely labeled pyramidal neurons (cell soma) corresponded to the same number of lamellas. In epileptic rats, the retrograde labeling extended 42-67% farther than the normal dorso-ventral extent including lamellas above and below the expected. This is direct evidence for sprouting of CA1 pyramidal axons into the subiculum and stratum lacunosum-moleculare of the CA1 region confirming the alterations of the laminar pattern of Timm's histochemistry. Sprouting of the CA1 projection to subiculum across hippocampal lamellas might lead to translamellar hyperexcitability, and to amplification and synchronization of epileptic discharges in the output gate of the hippocampal formation.

Acute Disease↗

Ictal chronology and interictal spikes predict perfusion patterns in temporal lobe epilepsy: a multivariate study.

Typical (TPP) and atypical (APP) perfusion patterns (PP) may be seen in ictal SPECT of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). APP may pose problem in the lateralization of the epileptogenic zone (EZ). We aimed to investigate predictive variables for the occurrence of TPP and APP. Fifty-one TLE patients were submitted to successful anterior-mesial temporal lobectomy. Univariate (UVA) and multivariate (MVA) analysis were performed upon clinical data, distribution of interictal spikes, and ictal chronology of seizures. From MVA, a final predictive model (FPM) was determined to better predict TPP and APP. Forty patients showed TPP (78.5%) and 11 patients APP (21.5%). Accuracy of ictal SPECT was higher in the unilateral (UIS) than in the bilateral (BIS) interictal spikes group (P = 0.05). FPM showed that patients exhibiting BIS, with shorter proportion of the electrographic seizure occurring after completion of tracer injection, and longer clinical than EEG seizure duration had more APP (P = 0.003). Generalized tonic-clonic seizures did not result in more APP. We concluded that analysis of ictal SPECT in TLE requires the knowledge of TPP and APP, the distribution of interictal spikes on temporal lobes and the ictal chronology of seizures. BIS showed that beyond a more complex epileptogenicity and seizure propagation, they may also lead to APP.

Adolescent↗

Role of immediate postictal diffusion-weighted MRI in localizing epileptogenic foci of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy and non-lesional neocortical epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether meaningful changes in signal intensity or in the apparent diffusion coefficient of water (ADC) in the ictal onset zone can be detected through immediate postictal and interictal diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWMRI) in patients with localization-related epilepsy. METHOD: In randomly selected 10 medial and lateral temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and four extratemporal epilepsy patients, DWMRI was performed immediately after a seizure and during the interictal period. All 14 patients were non-lesional except for hippocampal sclerosis detected on MRI. The mean time interval from seizure onset to postictal DWMRI was 81 min. Regions of interest (ROI) were selected in both the cortex, which was believed to be the ictal onset zone, and the corresponding anatomical region of the contralateral hemisphere in the postictal and interictal DWMRI. The mean ADC measured from all ROIs was compared. Ictal onset zones were determined by ictal electroencephalography (EEG) and seizure semiology. RESULTS: On visual inspection of postictal and interictal DWMRI, signal changes in the ictal onset zone could be identified in only one patient with medial TLE. The mean ADC values from the ictal onset zones were not significantly different from those of the corresponding contralateral regions of the cortices in both postictal and interictal DWMRI. However, the postictal ADC values of the epileptogenic foci of neocortical epilepsy or neocortical temporal portion of TLE without hippocampal sclerosis were decreased compared with interictal ones in whom both interictal and postictal DWMRIs were obtained (P = 0.028). CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrate that water diffusion can change even after a single seizure in non-lesional neocortical epilepsy.

Adolescent↗

Selective posterior cerebral artery amobarbital test in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy for surgical treatment.

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether the selective posterior cerebral artery amobarbital test (PCAAT) can predict postoperative memory function in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) for surgical treatment and its clinical safety. METHODS: The database included adult patients with intractable TLE undergoing presurgical evaluation at Taipei Veterans General Hospital between 1995 and 2002. The PCAAT was carried out on patients who had failed conventional intracarotid amobarbital test (IAT) or had IAT results that evoked a concern of postoperative memory function decline. A battery of learning and memory testing was performed immediately before and after injection of amobarbital into the peduncular segment of the posterior cerebral artery (PCA) on the presumed hemisphere of epileptogenicity. Neuropsychological assessments were followed in surgically treated patients. RESULTS: A total of 16 patients completed PCAAT successfully and underwent anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL). Four patients failed PCAAT angiographic procedures due to technical difficulty in one patient, transient signs of vasospasm in two patients, and subarachnoid hemorrhage in one patient. Of the 12 patients who performed well in PCAAT learning and memory testing items by free recall or recognition, only 1 patient demonstrated postoperative memory decline in follow-up neuropsychological assessments. In contrast, two of the four patients with a deficit in PCAAT memory testing showed postoperative memory decline. Regarding subjective memory function (not necessarily associated with objective memory decline), patients not seizure-free after ATL were more likely to have memory complaints (in 3 out of 6 patients) than patients with seizure-free outcomes (in 1 out of 10 patients). CONCLUSIONS: The PCAAT memory test reliably predicts postoperative memory function in patients with TLE for surgical treatment. However, the inherent risks of PCAAT must be considered and it should be used judiciously.

Adult↗

Electrode manipulation automatism during temporal lobe seizures.

OBJECTIVE: To describe clinical characteristics and lateralizing value of peri-ictal electrode manipulation automatism (EMA) in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and compare our data with ictal manual automatisms described in the literature. METHODS: Two-hundred and five videotaped seizures of 55 consecutive patients with refractory TLE and postoperatively seizure-free outcome were analyzed and EMA (tugging, scratching or adjusting the electrodes and cables) were monitored. RESULTS: Twenty-eight (51%) patients showed EMA during 47 (23%) seizures. Ictal start was noted in 22 seizures and in 19/22 cases EMA finished before the end of seizure. Ictal EMAs were always associated with automotor seizure components. During 25 seizures, exclusively postictal EMAs were observed. Electrode manipulation was presented during 24/112 left-sided and 23/93 right-sided seizures (p = 0.742). Peri-ictal EMA was unilateral (completed by one hand) in 24/47 seizures (10 ictal, 14 postictal); it was done by the hand ipsilateral to the seizure onset zone in 17/24 and by contralateral hand in 7/24 cases (p = 0.064). We observed concomitant contralateral dystonic posturing during 3/10 seizures with unilateral ictal EMA. Unilateral hand automatism, temporally independent from the EMA appeared in 30 (64%) of the 47 seizures. CONCLUSION: Peri-ictal EMA is a frequent phenomenon but shows no lateralizing value in TLE. The mechanism of EMA is in many ways dissimilar from that of earlier described manual automatisms.

Adolescent↗

The role of hippocampal sclerosis in antiepileptic drug-related depression in patients with epilepsy: a study on levetiracetam.

OBJECTIVE: Hippocampal sclerosis (HS) has been described as a relevant factor for the development of topiramate-related depression and cognitive deficits. The aim of our study was to clarify whether patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and HS were also at risk during therapy with levetiracetam (LEV). METHODS: Data of 156 patients was analysed: 78 with TLE and HS and 78 with TLE and normal MRI matched for age, starting dose and titration schedule of LEV. Patients were selected from a population of consecutive patients started on LEV between 2000 and 2002. RESULTS: No differences were observed in prevalence of cognitive adverse events and depression between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: LEV treatment is not associated with cognitive adverse events and depression in patients with hippocampal sclerosis.

Adult↗

Ictal spitting in left temporal lobe epilepsy: report of three cases.

PURPOSE: Ictal spitting is rarely reported in patients with epilepsy. More often it is observed in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and is presumed to be a lateralizing sign to language nondominant hemisphere. We report three patients with left TLE who had ictal spitting registered during prolonged video-EEG monitoring. METHODS: Medical charts of all patients with medically refractory partial epilepsy submitted to prolonged video-EEG monitoring in the Epilepsy Unit at UNIFESP during a 3-year period were reviewed, in search of reports of ictal spitting. The clinical, neurophysiological and neuroimaging data of the identified patients were reviewed. RESULTS: Among 136 patients evaluated with prolonged video-EEG monitoring, three (2.2%) presented spitting automatisms during complex partial seizures. All of them were right-handed, and had clear signs of left hippocampal sclerosis on MRI. In two patients, in all seizures in which ictal spitting was observed, EEG seizure onset was seen in the left temporal lobe. In the third patient, ictal onset with scalp electrodes was observed in the right temporal lobe, but semi-invasive monitoring with foramen ovale electrodes revealed ictal onset in the left temporal lobe, confirming false lateralization in surface records. The three patients became seizure-free following left anterior temporal lobectomy. CONCLUSIONS: Ictal spitting is a rare finding in patients with epilepsy, and may be considered a localizing sign of seizure onset in the temporal lobe. It may be observed in seizures originating from the left temporal lobe, and thus should not be considered a lateralizing sign of nondominant TLE.

Adult↗

Can intraoperative electrocorticography patterns predict surgical outcome in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy secondary to unilateral mesial temporal sclerosis?

INTRODUCTION: Intraoperative electrocorticography (ECoG) can be performed in cases of temporal lobe epilepsy due to hippocampal sclerosis (TLE-HS). However, its significance and correlation with surgical outcome are still controversial. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the electrophysiological characteristics of temporal lobe structures during ECoG of patients with TLE-HS, with emphasis on the comparison between pre- and post-resection recordings and surgical outcome. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Seventeen patients with refractory TLE-HS submitted to corticoamigdalohipocampectomy were included in the study. Clinical variables included age at the onset, duration of epilepsy and seizure outcome. The post-operative follow-up ranged from 24 to 36 months. According to outcome subjects were divided in two subgroups: (A) individuals free of seizures (Engel 1A), and (B) individuals not-free of seizures (Engel 1B-IV). Four patterns of ECoG findings were identified: isolated discharges; high frequency spikes (HFS); continuous discharges; combination of isolated discharges and HFS. According to predominant topography ECoG was classified as mediobasal, lateral (or neocortical), mediobasal and lateral. RESULTS: The progressive removal of the temporal pole and the hippocampus was associated with significant decrease of neocortical spikes. No correlation between clinical variables and seizure outcome was observed. Patients who only had isolated spikes on intraoperative ECoG presented a statistical trend for excellent surgical control. Patients who presented temporal pole blurring on MRI also had better post-surgical seizure outcome. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that out of diverse clinical and laboratory variables, only isolated discharges on intraoperative ECoG and temporal pole blurring on MRI predicted excellent post-surgical seizure outcome. However, other studies with larger number of patients are still necessary to confirm these findings.

Adult↗