Pharmacoresistance and the role of surgery in difficult to treat epilepsy

Pharmacoresistance occurs in up to 30% of patients with epilepsy, and is most commonly associated with epilepsy of structural or metabolic origin, abnormal findings on brain imaging or examination, and failure to respond to the first two antiepileptic drugs. However, in patients presumed to have difficult to treat epilepsy, factors that might result in apparent treatment resistance (misdiagnosis of epilepsy, incorrect drug and/or dose, and lifestyle issues) must first be excluded and the diagnosis re-examined. Epilepsy is commonly misdiagnosed, especially in patients with syncope and psychogenic events. The initial steps in confirming the diagnoses of both epilepsy and pharmacoresistance are to obtain a detailed, reliable history and to conduct a careful review of all prior trials of antiepileptic drug therapy. Once the diagnoses of epilepsy and pharmacoresistance are confirmed, the seizure type, epilepsy syndrome, and expected course of the disorder dictate its medical and surgical management. Epilepsy surgery should be considered promptly in these patients, since few interventions are as effective as brain surgery in this setting, particularly in patients with focal pharmacoresistant epilepsy. This Review discusses the concept of pharmacoresistance and describes the approach to management of the patient with difficult to treat epilepsy, focusing on the important role of epilepsy surgery.