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EPILEPSY
CENTER USES NEW TECHNOLOGY
FOR TREATING EPILEPSY
Epilepsy patients continue to benefit from the latest
technology in diagnosing and treating their disorder.
 The
Epilepsy and Brain Mapping Program's neuromagnetism research laboratory
is using a new whole head magnetoencephalogram (MEG) during pre-surgical
work-up for epilepsy surgery. This work-up enables the neurologist
to pinpoint the source of seizures in the brain and helps the neurosurgeon
to safely remove the area.
Magnetoencephalography
is an advanced technology used to locate and map normal and abnormal
brain areas noninvasively. To accurately record the brain's magnetic
fields, the MEG must be housed in a magnetically shielded room. This
special room blocks out all other magnetic fields from the surrounding
environment so the doctor can record only the brain's magnetic fields.
The Epilepsy and Brain Mapping Program (EBMP) is the only center in
the greater Los Angeles area that uses the whole head MEG. We combine
this sophisticated technology with electroencephalography (EEG), magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI), WADA testing, neuropsychometric testing,
magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and PET to more precisely localize
the point of seizure origin. Doctors at EBMP have found that combining
these technologies is critical not only in accurately irradicating
a patient's seizures but also in safely removing the seizure origin
without disturbing normal brain functions.
The program's neuromagnetism research laboratory is located at 10
Pico Street, Pasadena, California. The laboratory's director and principal
investigator, Dr. William W. Sutherling, is a pioneer in the field
of MEG research. He is considered one of the nation's foremost experts
on the subject. The present MEG lab has been supported for 15 years
by funding from the National Institutes of Health. A specific shared
instrumentation grant makes the MEG available to other scientists
throughout the country.
While tremendous progress has been made, the MEG's potential is only
beginning to be realized It offers a tremendous window on the brain
to allow better noninvasive localization for epilepsy surgery and
to treat the devastating disorder of medically intractable epilepsy.
EPILEPSY
PROGRAM'S KETOGENIC DIET
RESULTS CONSIDERED OUTSTANDING
The Epilepsy and Brain Mapping Program's ketogenic diet
program is considered one of the best in the country. Now, new results
revealed in a recent American Epilepsy Society abstract indicates
that the center has one of the highest success rates for the diet.
In a study of 41 patients with intractable convulsive epilepsy (ICE),
73% had a significant response to the diet: reduction by half in nine
patients, reduction by 9/10 in 11 patients and seizure-free in 10
patients.
Jeri
Sutherling, EBMP's ketogenic diet coordinator says their success is
due to intensive one-to-one care between the diet program's nurse
and dietitian, excellent education of patient and family regarding
implementation of the diet and careful planning and selection of patients
prior to beginning treatment.
WANTED:
VOLUNTEERS AND DONORS
Epilepsy is as prevelant as diabetes but very little
money is raised each year for epilepsy research. Our goal is to raise
these critically needed funds. The foundation needs your help. Several
research projects on the ketogenic diet and the magnetoencephalography
are underway that need your support.
Pediatric Epilepsy Research: The main focus pediatric epilepsy
research is on the ketogenic diet. For years, doctors, nurses and
dietitians have witnessed the effectiveness of the ketogenic diet
in both children and adults but the reason for its success is still
a mystery. No one knows for sure how the diet works, how it interacts
with the body to prevent seizures. It is the goal of our scientists
to answer this decades-old question.
The
second project is to explore the ketogenic diet's effect on cognitive
functioning. Besides preventing seizures, it is believed that the
diet improves patients' cognitive functioning. Nurses, dietitians
and neuropsychologists are working to prove this theory and therefore
establish the ketogenic diet as a mechanism not only to prevent seizures
but to improve cognitive functioning. This finding will improve the
lives of many young epilepsy patients by helping them during their
formative, learning years.
Scientists also are developing nutritional research on the ketogenic
diet to determine the diet's long term effects on a patient's health.
It is often debated that the diet's high fat content makes it a risky
treatment for many patients. Scientists will determine the diet's
nutritional safety, the effects on cholesteral and triglyceride levels
and any long term residual effects on the person's health.
Magnetoencephalography in Epilepsy: It is vital to have more
alternatives for diagnosing and localizing seizures noninvasively.
With the use of a new whole head 128 channel MEG, our scientists are
continuing to refine the use of several diagnostic procedures to do
this. The MEG also is being used in brain mapping of brain tumors
and the sensorimotor area.
Currently, researchers are developing an intricate process of localizing
seizure origin via the use of traditional means - video EEG telemetry,
WADA testing, neuropsychometric testing, MRI and PET - and adding
more noninvasive procedures such as the MEG, functional MRI, magnetic
resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and SPECT. By combining the noninvasive
tests and correlating the information researchers believe they will
be better able to localize the zone of seizure origin and therefore
more safely remove the seizure zone without disturbing vital brain
functioning such as language, motor and memory. In addition these
new diagnostic methods, scientists continue to collaborate with other
doctors and researchers from across the country to investigate memory
function after epilepsy surgery, attention and autism and the use
of Flumazenil PET to identify focal epileptogenic zones.
If you are interested in donating to epilepsy research or if you would
like to volunteer your time to help the foundation in their fundraising
effort please contact Jeri Sutherling at (626)792-7300 or (800)621-2102
regarding your charitable contribution. Please indicate the project
you wish to support when making your donation.
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