Albisua Sanchez Julio
Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Spain
Title: Vagus nerve stimulation in epilepsy
Biography
Biography: Albisua Sanchez Julio
Abstract
Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) belongs to the palliative treatment group of epilepsy. It is aimed to reduce the seizures frequency and severity, but it is uncommon to get a patient seizure free on VNS therapy.
VNS therapy is delivered from an helicoidal electrode surgically placed around one of the vagus nerve in the neck. Left vagus nerve usually preferred, due to the lesser cardiac innervation it has.
VNS electrode is plugged into an implanted generator that can be telemetrically programmed. Surgery is about 2 hours time and present infrequent complications.
VNS therapy can reduce seizures by a 75% in about 30% of patients and by a 50% in almost 50% of them. Secondary effects are usually mild and consists mainly of hoarseness, cough, shortness of breath and paresthesias. They usually appear during stimulation and tend to diminish over time
VNS is indicated in medically refractory seizures that are not amenable to surgical resection.