Preventing Pediatric Seizures

Bioengineering Professor of Research Christos Papadelis and doctoral student Ludovica Corona have discovered how to identify which brain cells lead to epileptic episodes in children.

Their team used noninvasive techniques and advanced computational methods to measure the electric and magnetic signals generated by neural cells in the human brain and identify the functional networks that are responsible for the generation of seizures in children suffering from epilepsy.

"This could benefit so many children who can't control epilepsy with drugs, which represents between 20% and 30% of children suffering from epilepsy," says Dr. Papadelis.

Currently, epilepsy surgery is the safest and most effective treatment for these patients since it offers a 50% chance of eliminating seizures.

"By identifying which parts of the brain are producing the seizures, we can then resect them with brain surgery or ablate them with a laser," Papadelis says. "The test we developed pinpoints where the epilepsy network is occurring. Currently, there is no clinical exam to identify this brain area with high precision." ₪