High frequency oscillations based epilepsy surgery

Episign: high frequency oscillations based epilepsy surgery

Epilepsy surgery can cure people from a lifelong disease. The most crucial factor for success is good delineation of the epileptic brain tissue. The EEG signal, which can be recorded directly from the brain with electrocorticography, using grids with multiple electrodes, can help to guide the neurosurgeon. This consortium, including the largest tertiary referral center for epilepsy surgery, a medical industrial design company and an intra-operative electrophysiology monitoring company, is building an innovative intra-operative guiding system to help the neurosurgeon find and remove the source of epilepsy.

Focal epilepsy occurs in about 0.5% of people. The success rate of epilepsy surgery is 60-80% and thus only a last resort treatment option if medication fails. Improving the success rate will increase the number of people eligible for surgery, reducing the need for medication, improving cognitive development in children and curing people with tumors from their epileptic seizures during tumor surgery.

The project aims to better define the epileptogenic zone, by comparing EEG biomarkers and feeding these into a system that can semi-automatically guide the neurosurgeon through the neurosurgical procedure. The fundamental led to the build-up of a large database of intra-operatively recorded invasive EEG. The first analyses on potential biomarkers were performed. The industrial research led to an optimized software interface design for interpretation of the EEG signal and a very first attempt to implement this in existing software. Also, a way to mark electrode positions and project their location onto the brain after removal of the electrodes was developed.

Summary
Epilepsy surgery can cure people from a lifelong disease. This consortium is building an innovative intra-operative guiding system to help the neurosurgeon find and remove the source of epilepsy.
Technology Readiness Level (TRL)
4 - 5
Time period
39 months
Partners
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