ID: 206137 Connectivity During Focal Impaired Awareness and Focal Aware Seizures: Opportunities for Neuromodulation to Preserve Consciousness

Abstract

Epilepsy affects nearly 1% of the global population with focal epilepsy being the most common type, with 40% of patients not responding to medications.1,2 Both focal aware seizures (FAS) and focal impaired awareness seizures (FIAS) drastically impact patients’ lives. The loss of consciousness in FIAS can be particularly devastating and is hypothesized to arise from widespread network dysfunction.3-6 Neurostimulation has been effective in medically refractory focal epilepsy7 and, as proposed in a recent clinical trial, it may be possible for neurostimulation to help preserve consciousness.8 Evaluation of widespread brain network functional connectivity in FAS vs. FIAS may provide insight into the neurostimulation targets strategies to prevent loss of consciousness in FIAS.