Researchers have identified connections in the brain involved in epileptic seizures, a discovery that could provide relief to patients suffering from this chronic disease.
- Researchers have discovered a network of connections in the brain, at the level of the frontal lobe, linked to epileptic seizures.
- By disconnecting the nerve pathways in the brain that connect the frontal lobe to deep brain structures, they have prevented epileptic patients from having seizures.
- This neurosurgery is a promising development for people with drug-resistant epilepsy.
Acting on the frontal lobe, a region of the brain responsible for voluntary motor coordination and language, one of the keys to relieving epileptic seizures? This is the track explored by researchers at the Queen Square Institute of Neurology at UCL in England.
Epilepsy is characterized by the occurrence of impressive seizures
According to their work, published in Brain, By disconnecting certain pathways in the frontal lobe through neurosurgery, patients may be able to sustain seizure freedom.
Epileptic seizure, a chronic disease of the brain, is characterized by transient physical manifestations that result from sudden and excessive electrical discharges of nerve impulses in the brain, true “lightning” traversing many neurons, indicates theHealth Insurance.
In France, about 600,000 people have epilepsy, half of whom are under 20 years old, this disease is more common in children and the elderly.
An operation on a specific part of the brain drastically reduces seizures
The team of British researchers analyzed the MRIs of 47 patients who had undergone frontal lobe surgery for their epilepsy years earlier.
They found that patients no longer had long-term seizures when the nerve pathways in the brain that connect the frontal lobe to deep brain structures (the thalamus and striatum, responsible for transmitting sensory and motor signals, motor control, emotions and reward) were disconnected. “88% of patients were seizure-free after three years and 80% after five years”, write the authors of the study.
In addition to preventing the recurrence of future seizures, the researchers found that cutting the connections had no negative effects on language or executive functions. Neurosurgery can be a truly effective treatment for the many people facing the challenges of uncontrolled epilepsy, the scientists conclude.
