Abstracts

Rationale: Twenty to 30% of patients with seizures have medically intractable epilepsy. Many of these patients may benefit from resective epilepsy surgery; however, some of them (ie. those with multifocal epilepsy) are not eligible for this type of treatment. Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is a viable option for these patients with intractable epilepsy who are not candidates for resective epilepsy surgery. Objectives: The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy, tolerability and safety in the control of seizures following VNS implantation in patients cared for at the Neurology Institute of Curitiba (INC). Methods: A case study of twenty patients with refractory epilepsy who underwent VNS implantation at the INC from year 2007 to year 2016. We described the patients' epilepsy history, electroencephalography as well as neuroimaging. Additionally, we designed and used a questionnaire that assessed and quantified (1) seizure control after VNS (2) quality of life, (3) adverse effects and (4) number of postoperative admissions. Results: The mean age at implantation was 31 months, with a mean follow-up of 28.2 months. The seizure frequency decreased by 60 to 80% in 11 patients (55%). Among all patients, 9 patients (45%) required no additional hospital admissions. About 55% of patients believed they had a significant improvement in their quality of life. Conclusions: In this population, VNS has proven to be a good option in the treatment of refractory epilepsy. Also, it appears to provide a significant improvement in quality of life of these patients, which was based not only on the reduction of seizures and hospitalizations, but also in improved mood , attention, memory and thinking - which directly reflects the social relations and cognition of these patients. Funding: Nothing to disclosure