Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 2, 2026
Preparation of Peripheral Nerve Stimulation Electrodes for Chronic Implantation in Rats
Published on: July 14, 2020
Predicting success of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) from interictal EEG
C C de Vos1, L Melching, J van Schoonhoven
1MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, The Netherlands. c.devos@mst.nl
Purpose:
Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) has shown to be an effective treatment for drug resistant epilepsy in numerous patients, however, not in all. It is still not possible to predict which patients will profit from VNS. In this pilot study, we explore predictive interictal EEG features for seizure reduction after VNS.
Methods:
19 Patients with medically refractory epilepsy and an implanted VNS system were included. Interictal EEG registrations, recorded before implantation, were retrospectively analysed. A quantative symmetry measure, the pair wise derived brain symmetry index (pdBSI), was tested to predict VNS outcome. Reduction in seizure frequency was used to define the responders.
Results:
10 Patients did respond to VNS, of whom 7 patients had a seizure reduction of at least 50% in a follow-up period of 2 years. On average, we find higher pdBSI values for delta, theta, alpha and beta bands for non-responders than for responders. The average pdBSI of the theta and alpha bands could significantly discriminate between responders and non-responders.
Conclusion:
In this study, quantifying EEG symmetry using the pdBSI shows promising results in predicting the reduction of seizure frequency after VNS treatment.
