Combined EEG/fMRI recording in musicogenic epilepsy

Seizures induced by musical stimulation are usually correlated to temporal epilepsy, although the precise localization of their epileptogenic networks are not well characterized. Brain imaging studies show that regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) recorded during musicogenic seizures is increased in putative epileptogenic foci, as well as in other brain regions not directly related to seizure activity. These studies, however, afford only a virtual temporal relation between ictal discharges and rCBF changes, given that brain images are correlated with off-line EEG recordings. To obviate this problem, the simultaneous multimodal recording of the episode of musicogenic epilepsy is mandatory. The present study describes the EEG-fMRI co-recording of musicogenic elicited seizures in a case of simple partial epilepsy. Our results show that EEG features recorded in epileptogenic areas are largely coupled with rCBF increase. Furthermore, rCBF modifications in other regions suggest that additional aspects of musical processing are also elicited during musicogenic seizures.