Abstract
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of anterior thalamic nucleus (ATN) is being regarded as an effective adjunctive therapy for patients with intractable epilepsy unsuitable for epilepsy brain surgery and vagal nerve stimulation, especially after the results from the SANTE trial. The proper selection of DBS parameters (DBSPs) plays a crucial role in determining the therapeutic success of ATN-DBS. The current mode of selection of DBSPs is by trial and error and adjustments in the DBSPs are governed by the clinical response (i.e., improvement in the seizure profile). This brief paper presents a novel and superior approach to the selection of effective DBSPs and advocates replacement of the current mode of selection with a mode targeted to induce EEG-desynchronization which is known to exert potent antiepileptic influence with possibly possession of additional anti-kindling effect that can suppress or even arrest the ongoing process of epileptogenesis in the patients with intractable epilepsy in addition to control over the intractable seizures. To the author’s knowledge, since the postulated mode of selection of DBSPs has not been reported to date, a patent application has been filed both in India and in the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Keywords: Anterior thalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation, anti-kindling effect, deep brain stimulation parameters, direct EEG monitoring, EEG-desynchronization, SANTE trial.
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