Novel Devices, Technologies Provide Insights into Seizure Control, Surgical Targets

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In a third study, (abstract 2.083) researchers from the University of Toronto describe a device capable of detecting and diminishing seizure activity. The closed-loop device aims to treat epilepsy by delivering a brief electrical stimulation at early or late stages of seizure formation, similar to how a pacemaker might stop abnormal heart rhythms.

Researchers developed seizure-detection algorithms for the device in two rat models of epilepsy and programmed two iterations of the device - known as CLS-V1 and CLS-V2 - to deliver the brief electrical stimulation before, or within seconds of, seizure onset. They tested the devices on rats with seizures described as either acute (repeated seizures over a 2-hour period) or chronic (an average of five seizures per day for multiple days).

Their findings reveal that the CLS-V1 device, which detected seizures about 21 to 53 seconds before onset in the acute and chronic groups, respectively, was slightly less accurate than the CLS-V2 device, which detected seizures two to four seconds after onset in the acute and chronic groups. However, the CLS-V1 was much more effective, reducing seizure frequency by 81 percent in rats with acute epilepsy and 90 percent in rats with chronic epilepsy. By contrast, the CLS-V2 reduced seizure frequency by 58 percent and 76 percent in the acute versus chronic groups.

"Brief closed-loop stimulation at an early stage of seizure formation is more effective at stopping seizure development than stimulation at a later stage, presumably because it is easier to disrupt a surge in activity before the full seizure develops than to stop it midway," says author M. Tariqus Salam, Ph.D., a researcher at the University of Toronto.

In addition to helping patients with epilepsy, the closed-loop approach may provide a novel therapeutic strategy for patients with neuropsychiatric syndromes, which share some of the abnormal patterns of brain activity exhibited by the rats with acute and chronic seizures.

About the American Epilepsy Society:

The American Epilepsy Society is a medical and scientific society whose members are engaged in research and clinical care for people with epilepsy. For more than 75 years, AES has provided a dynamic global forum where professionals from academia, private practice, not-for-profit, government and industry can learn, share and grow. Find out more at aesnet.org.

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