Insufficient efficacy of vagus nerve stimulation for epileptic spasms and tonic spasms in children with refractory epilepsy

摘要

Background: Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) leads to palliation of refractory seizures. Epileptic spasms (ES) and tonic spasms (TS) appear in children with West syndrome and symptomatic generalized epilepsy. Both types of spasms are often characterized by truncal muscular contractions and ictal electroencephalography (EEG) findings comprising the contiguous phases: phase 1) 15-20 Hz, spindle-like fast activity (occur in 70%), 2) diffuse polyphasic delta/theta waves (100%), and 3) electrodecremental activity (70%). Here, we examined the effect of VNS on these spasms that are uniformly associated with the EEG and electromyogram changes.