Bariatric surgery may be a risk factor for a condition that causes severe headaches, according to a study published in the October 22, 2014, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. In the study, gastric bypass surgery and gastric banding surgery were associated with later developing a condition called […]
Initial data from an open-label study in treatment-resistant epilepsy of pharmaceutical-grade cannabidiol — the nonpsychoactive ingredient in marijuana that is believed to be responsible for its antiepileptic action — suggest that it reduces seizure rate by about 30%. The product, said to be 98% pure cannabidiol, in development under the brand name Epidiolex by GW Pharmaceuticals, which […]
Epilepsy surgery adds several years to the life expectancy of children with refractory epilepsy who are deemed suitable surgical candidates, and it may improve their quality of life compared with continuing medical therapy only, a new study suggests. While there’s a growing consensus that surgery is sometimes an optimal choice in some pediatric patients, the […]
Children With Epilepsy The diagnosis of epilepsy is life-changing for children and their parents. It provokes a host of questions (many of which are addressed in my book, Epilepsy: 199 Answers).[1] Two of the most critical questions are “What caused the seizure?” and “Will it happen again?” The answers will define the course of epilepsy for that […]
A gene crucial for brain and heart development may also be associated with sudden unexplained death in epilepsy (SUDEP), the most common cause of early mortality in epilepsy patients. Scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have created a new animal model for SUDEP and have shown that mice who have a […]
Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine and School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have used graphene — a two-dimensional form of carbon only one atom thick — to fabricate a new type of microelectrode that solves a major problem for investigators looking to understand the intricate circuitry of the brain. […]
