Clinical Research Directory

Self-administered ONe-of-a Kind Approach to Epilepsy Therapy Through a Web-based Music Application

This is a prospective, placebo-controlled, double-blinded randomized study of self-administered auditory intervention in a naturalistic home environment.

Characterising the Network-Specific Effects of Piriform Cortex Stimulation Via SEEG

The prospective study aims to characterize the network-specific modulatory effects of piriform cortex stimulation in patients undergoing stereotactic EEG for drug-resistant epilepsy. Using multimodal data, it seeks to link stimulation-evoked electrophysiological responses across brain networks with clinical outcomes, to inform targeted neuromodulation therapies.

Optimization of Deep Brain Stimulation Parameters in Patients With Medically Refractory Epilepsy

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is used to treat epilepsy in cases where patients are medically refractory and are not candidates for surgical resection. This therapy has been shown to be effective in seizure reduction, yet very few patients achieve the ultimate goal of seizure freedom. Implantable neural stimulators (INSs) have many parameters that may be adjusted, and could be tuned to achieve very patient specific therapies. This study will develop a platform for stimulation setting optimization based on power spectral density (PSD) measures.

Effect of Blue Light on Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Patients With Refractory Epilepsy

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is an adjunctive treatment for refractory epilepsy. Although widely used, there is still a substantial number of patients with insufficient response. Light, and particularly blue light, can stimulate alertness, attention and cognition through modulation of anatomical targets which are common to the vagal afferent network. This project aims at understanding how exposure to blue enriched light may influence VNS effects in patients with refractory epilepsy by exploring the modulation of a series of biomarkers of VNS action. This could possibly lead to new therapeutic strategies to increase efficacy of VNS.

The Efficacy of a Subanesthetic Doses of IV Ketamine in the Treatment Drug Resistant Epilepsy

Ketamine is a medication that came into clinical practice in the 1960's. Ketamine is used as an anesthetic and to provide pain relief. Recently, Ketamine was approved to treat drug resistant depression using subanesthetic doses. In the hospital setting, intravenous anesthetic dosages are used to treat unrelenting seizures known as status epilepticus in comatose patients. Ketamine in subanesthetic doses has not been tried as a treatment for medication resistant seizures in the outpatient setting. This study would like to examine the effectiveness of subanesthetic ketamine in outpatients who suffer from drug resistant epilepsy.

Investigating the Functional Characteristics During Wakefulness and Sleep Based on SEEG

This study aims to collect electrophysiological and clinical data from patients aged 14-65 with drug-resistant epilepsy who underwent SEEG. The collected data will be analyzed to investigate the functional connectivity during wakefulness and sleep states.

Optimal Stimulation Parameters to Disrupt Epileptiform Activity

Open-loop electrical stimulation has been found to reduce spike activity and seizures, but determining the optimal parameters to achieve these effects requires a brute force trial-and-error approach that relies on subjective physician discretion. We will compare the performance of stimulation parameters identified in rodent models to the recommended parameters for neuromodulation used in clinical practice.

An Automated Navigation System for Deep Brain Electrode Implantation

1. Analysis of the correlation between imaging and electrophysiological signals. 2. Real time analysis method for optimal implantation position. 3. Simultaneous Imaging and electrophysiology navigation. 4. Accuracy and security verification of navigation system. Expectation(Hypothesis): Develop an automated DBS surgical navigation system based on multimodal brain imaging data and neural electro-physiological signals, which can achieve real-time linkage navigation between imaging and electrophysiology, and automatically generate the optimal implantation position of DBS electrodes based on imaging and electrophysiological information through deep learning algorithms, thereby reducing DBS electrode implantation position errors and improving surgical efficacy.

Leucine Enriched Essential Amino Acid Powder as an Add-on to a Classic Ketogenic Diet in Refractory Epilepsy

The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of a Leucine-Enriched Essential Amino Acid (LEAA) Powder as an add-on to a classic ketogenic diet (KD) in pediatric and adult patients with refractory epilepsy.

Atlas of Human Cognition by SEEG (MAPCOG-SEEG)

The main objective of MAPCOG\_SEEG is to create a database including brain recordings of cognition performed in clinical routine in patients during the pre-surgical SEEG assessment. This aims to be able to propose the first atlas of human cognition with a high temporal and spatial resolution.

High Definition Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (HD-tDCS) for Refractory Epilepsy

To observe the clinical effect and safety of transcranial electrical stimulation on patients with refractory epilepsy before and after treatment and analyze its therapeutic mechanism.