Managing Drug-Resistant Epilepsy as an Outpatient
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 January 2023
Around a third of patients have drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE). This is crucially and easily determined if a patient continues to have seizures after being on two adequately dosed and appropriately selected antiseizure medicines (ASMs). For these patients, your initial efforts to make a specific and localized diagnosis will inform next treatment decisions. If a patient presents suddenly with DRE, it is key to assess for a possible autoimmune cause, as a separate treatment pathway should be considered. Otherwise, consider epilepsy surgery as an effective treatment. These treatments include brain resections and neuromodulation. Minimally invasive techniques have recently become more common, including laser surgery as well as stereotactically placed depth electrodes. Given the prevalence of neurostimulators, consideration for obtaining MRIs in patients with these devices is addressed, as pathways exist for all of these patients to safely undergo MRI testing.
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