Active clinical trials for "Epilepsy"

This study will explore whether the human herpes virus-6 is associated with epileptic seizures. The virus may be involved in brain scarring, called mesial temporal sclerosis, which is seen in some epilepsy patients. The virus is also thought possibly to interfere with neurotransmitters - chemicals that brain cells use to communicate with each other. This study will measure levels of two of these chemicals, GABA and glutamate, which are believed to play a role in the development of seizures. Patients with epilepsy, with or without mesial temporal sclerosis, and healthy control subjects 18 years of age and older may be eligible for this study. Control subjects may not be taking any medication on a regular basis. Epilepsy patients may take only phenytoin, carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, lamotrigine, or levetiracetam. Candidates are screened with a physical examination and blood tests. Participants have blood drawn and undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and lumbar puncture (spinal tap). Blood Draw Up to four teaspoons of blood are drawn through a needle in the arm for this study. MRI MRI uses a magnetic field and radio waves to produce pictures of the brain. The scanner is a metal cylinder surrounded by a strong magnetic field. During the scan, the subject lies on a bed that slides into the cylinder, wearing earplugs to muffle loud noises the machine makes when the magnetic fields are switched. The scan takes about 90 to 120 minutes, during which time the subject can communicate with the technician. Lumbar Puncture For this test the subject sits upright or lies on his or her side with knees curled at the chest. A local anesthetic is injected at the lower back, and a needle is inserted in the space between the bones where the cerebrospinal fluid circulates below the spinal cord. A small amount of fluid is collected through the needle. Collection of the fluid usually takes from 5 to 20 minutes.

The purpose of this study is to determine if antiseizure drugs affect hormone levels and sexual function in men with seizures.

This study is designed to evaluate patients with uncontrolled seizures. Seizures can be associated with and monitored by abnormal electrical activity in the brain. In this study researchers will use video-electroencephalography (EEG) to monitor patients with uncontrolled or suspected seizures. EEG works by measuring electrical activity in different areas of the brain. The video-EEG allows researchers to examine changes in the EEG along with the clinical features of seizures as they occur. In addition to monitoring electrical activity of the brain, researchers will take frequent antiepileptic drug blood levels. These measures will allow researchers to learn more about how each drug is absorbed and metabolized in the body. The information collected in the study will be used to place patients into other scientific studies testing new therapies for epilepsy.

Background and Objectives: Seizure attack is one of adverse effects of vaccination in epileptic patients, the risk of which after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) inoculation was elucidated in the present study. Methods: A self-controlled case series study was designed to examine the association between vaccination and epileptic seizure. A total of 240 epilepsy patients were included who were vaccinated with inactive SARS-CoV-2 vaccines (Sinovac Life Sciences and Lanzhou Institute of Biological Products) and admitted to outpatient clinics from July 2021 to December 2021. Poisson analysis was performed to estimate the relative incidence rate of epileptic seizure in risk periods (day 1-7, 8-21 and 1-21 after first-dose vaccination) compared to basal level in control period.

The purpose of this research study is to measure current flow inside the head using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The data from this study will be used to map the current flow caused from the electrical stimulation inside the head. The methods develop will be used to map and better control delivery of the current for electrical stimulation to modify a psychiatric condition such as depression; or other conditions such as epilepsy, Parkinson's disease or autism.

This study was carried out with the purpose of evaluating zinc and selenium levels in serum of epileptic patients and compare with normal individuals.

To determine whether EEGs during infancy is a reliable biomarker to identify TSC patients that will develop infantile spasms/epilepsy in the near future and thus are appropriate candidates for an antiepileptogenic drug trial. Since not all patients with TSC develop epilepsy, it would be useful to have a biomarker that could predict those patients destined to have epilepsy and thus identify those TSC patients most appropriate for an antiepileptogenic drug trial. A recent study suggests that treating TSC patients with an abnormal EEG prior to onset of infantile spasms with vigabatrin may improve neurological outcome, but the use of EEG as a reliable biomarker of future epilepsy has not been rigorously validated. In this specific aim, we will test the reliability of EEG in predicting future development of infantile spasms or epilepsy in TSC patients during the first year of life.

Background: - Some people with epilepsy have an epileptic focus, a small part of the brain that is the starting point of the seizure. This focus is like an irritant or an inflammation, and helps cause the seizure. People with epilepsy that affects the temporal lobe of the brain often have an epileptic focus. Researchers want to look at the epileptic focus by using a drug that attaches to a protein associated with inflammation. An imaging study with the drug will show how much inflammation is in the area of the brain where the seizures start. The drug, called [11C]DPA-713, will be tested for its effectiveness in people with temporal lobe epilepsy. Its effects will be compared with imaging studies given to healthy volunteers. Objectives: - To see if [11C]DPA-713 can show the inflammation in the epileptic focus of seizures. Eligibility: Individuals at least 18 years of age who have temporal lobe epilepsy. Healthy volunteers at least 18 years of age. Design: Participants will have three outpatient visits to the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center. The visits will last from 2 to 5 hours. Participants will be screened with a physical exam, neurological exam, and medical history. Blood samples will be collected before the start of the study. Participants will have a positron emission tomography (PET) scan. This scan will be used to look at brain chemistry and function. The study drug will be given during the scan to see how well it shows points of inflammation in the brain. Some participants will provide additional blood samples during the PET scan. Participants will also have a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. This scan will look at the structure of the brain.

HEP is a five-year, prospective, observational study whose primary goal is to identify clinical characteristics and biomarkers predictive of disease outcome, progression, and treatment response in participants with newly treated focal epilepsy.

The purpose of this research study is to determine if the blood tests used to measure free thyroid hormone levels are affected by a drug called eslicarbazepine acetate. To determine if eslicarbazepine acetate interferes with these blood tests, blood samples will be analysed so that researchers can compare different types of lab tests that measure these thyroid hormones. Half of the people who participate in this study will already be taking eslicarbazepine acetate either as a study drug or as a prescription (Part 1) and the other half will be people who do not take eslicarbazepine acetate (Part 2).