Active clinical trials for "Drug Resistant Epilepsy"

The primary aim of the study is to determine the effect of reducing the number and/or dose of anti epileptic drugs on an individual's quality of life and seizure control in people with difficult to control epilepsy and who are on polytherapy. This is a randomised trial so children will be divided into two groups, with reduction of anti epileptic drugs in the first group (withdrawal group) and no change to their medications in the second (control group). Irrespective of the group the child is assigned to (withdrawal group or control group), we will ask parents to complete several questionnaires on 2 occasions: the first time will be immediately after the child enters the study (i.e. baseline assessment), and a second and last one will be 6 months after entering the study (i.e. follow-up assessment). These questionnaires aim to "quantify" aspects related with quality of life, AED side effects, seizure severity, and behaviour.

The aim of the proposed pilot study is to investigate patient tolerability and efficacy of moderate term, repeated exposure of Pulsed Low-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (PLIFUS) in patients with drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy.

The purpose of this study is to see whether a phone-intervention called HOBSCOTCH will improve health, daily functioning and quality of life among patients with refractory epilepsy. HOBSCOTCH stands for "Home-Based Self-Management and Cognitive Training Changes Lives." This study will also help to find the best ways of integrating this telehealth intervention to routine clinic use.

The purpose of this study is to use functional imaging to study the mechanisms of the anterior nucleus of the thalamus (ANT) deep brain stimulation (DBS).

This study will investigate whether a Vagal Nerve Stimulator (VNS) causes measurable desynchronization and reduces epileptiform activity, such as spikes and seizures, in electrocorticograms (ECOGs) recorded by a Responsive Neurostimulator (RNS) in patients who have both devices implanted. Specific aims of the study: Evaluate the change in frequency of epileptiform discharges during active VNS stimulation compared to interstimulation baseline periods Evaluate the change in frequency of seizures during active VNS stimulation compared to interstimulation baseline periods Evaluate the change in the number of RNS activations during active VNS stimulation compared to interstimulation baseline periods Evaluate the change in synchronization of background ECoG (electrocorticogram) during VNS stimulation compared to interstimulation baseline periods.

People with epilepsy are at a higher risk for sudden unexpected death than the general population. Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) is a major cause of death in this population, accounting for 10-50% of deaths for those with epilepsy. The risk for SUDEP is particularly high for those with refractory epilepsy. Several lines of evidence support a cardiac mechanism for SUDEP. This study plans to determine: the frequency and types of cardiac arrhythmias that occur in this population and whether these are increased above the general population in the same age group. Additionally, these data will be correlated to specific clinical data, including seizure history, anticonvulsant medications, and any accompanying clinical symptoms.

This is a treatment study under an approved Expanded Use IND protocol for using Cannabidiol (CBD) Extract. CBD will be used for the treatment of 5-10 children with drug resistant epilepsy. The CBD used in this study is prepared at the University of Mississippi under approval of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) for its preparation and FDA approval under an expanded access mechanism on a compassionate use basis. The target patient population is who would otherwise have no appropriate remaining treatment modality left. These are patients for whom the risks of a relatively untested product are outweighed by the potential benefit. Using seizure-diaries to register seizure frequency, drug log and questionnaire to measure parent/patient quality of life and side effects will be assessed in each visit. Visits are: baseline, 4, 8, and 12 weeks visit. A 24 weeks visit (6 months) will be performed if the patient is stable on therapy during the 3 initial months and want to continue on the study for 3 more months. CBD will be administered as an adjunct to all current anti-epileptic therapies.

The purpose of this study is to determine if cannabidiol is safe and effective at different doses as an additional treatment for pediatric drug-resistant epilepsy. Pure cannabidiol has potentially therapeutic properties, such as anti-convulsant effects, that may reduce seizure frequency. There are only a few open label studies that have demonstrated the safety and tolerance of cannabiodiol in both adult and pediatric epileptic populations--these studies were performed either retrospectively or with varying cannabidiol preparations. There are no well-documented studies and completely analyzed data for pediatric epileptic patients.

This is an observational, open-label, flexible dose study that will prospectively and longitudinally assess the effect of Cannabidiol (CBD) therapy in patients with drug-resistant epilepsies through a Physician Expanded Access Investigational New Drug protocol.

This is a pilot research study where language and working memory tasks will be used to study brain activities from children with epilepsy. Specifically for language assessment, a well-known MEG language protocol will be used and novel signal processing techniques will be applied. A widely utilized paradigm will be used to study memory function and adapt signal-processing techniques from previous literature for the processing and analysis of MEG signals collected during memory task. No treatment/intervention will be performed or evaluated in this pilot research study.