New theory of epilepsy could lead to treatment fo...( hat it explains why the seizures come ...),Health

hat "it explains why the seizures come and go." According to the study, normal brain tissue is only "recruited" to behave abnormally when neural communication in the otherwise healthy tissue speeds up. If the neuron communication speed could be adjusted (using drugs or electrical stimulation) just before the onset of a seizure, then the recruitment step could be "short-circuited", preventing the seizure.

That would mean that patients, whose only treatment option now is brain surgery, could choose a much less invasive way of controlling their epilepsy. And many others, without current options, might have the ability to live normal, healthy, seizure free lives.

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Contact: Rory McGee
rmcgee@aip.org
301-209-3088
American Institute of Physics
23-Aug-1999

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