Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 20, 2025

Author Spotlight: Advancing Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery in Children Through Novel Biomarkers and Enhanced Localization
09:57

Author Spotlight: Advancing Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery in Children Through Novel Biomarkers and Enhanced Localization

Published on: September 20, 2024

2.9K

Validating Coding for the Identification of Pediatric Treatment Resistant Epilepsy Patients

Daniel A Freedman1, Zachary Grinspan2, Peter Glynn3

  • 1Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.

Child Neurology Open
|September 13, 2021
PubMed

Insights

International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes accurately identify individuals with treatment-resistant epilepsy. This study found high sensitivity and specificity, supporting their use in clinical trials and quality improvement initiatives.

Area of Science:

  • Neurology
  • Medical Informatics
  • Public Health

Background:

  • The International Classification of Diseases (ICD) system offers subcodes to denote treatment-resistant epilepsy.
  • Accurate identification of treatment-resistant epilepsy is crucial for quality improvement, population health management, and clinical trial recruitment.
  • The reliability of these ICD subcodes for identifying treatment-resistant epilepsy has not been clearly established.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the accuracy of International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes in identifying individuals with treatment-resistant epilepsy.
  • To assess the sensitivity and specificity of ICD codes for this specific patient population.

Main Methods:

  • A single-center, cross-sectional study was conducted.
  • 344 individuals were analyzed, with approximately half diagnosed with treatment-resistant epilepsy.
  • The accuracy of ICD codes was determined by comparing them against a clinical diagnosis.

Main Results:

  • The ICD codes demonstrated a sensitivity of 90% (147/164) and a specificity of 86% (155/180) for identifying treatment-resistant epilepsy.
  • Identified reasons for miscoding in children included epilepsy surgery, absence epilepsy, care by different providers, and recent visits to a movement disorders clinic.

Conclusions:

  • International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes are a reliable tool for identifying individuals with treatment-resistant epilepsy.
  • The high accuracy supports the use of these codes in clinical practice for various healthcare management purposes.

Keywords:
childrenepilepsypediatricrefractoryseizures

More Related Videos

Identification and Classification of Position-specific GABAA Receptor Subunit Missense Variants for Their Role In Hippocampal Pyramidal Neurons08:04

Identification and Classification of Position-specific GABAA Receptor Subunit Missense Variants for Their Role In Hippocampal Pyramidal Neurons

Published on: June 6, 2025

673
Interictal High Frequency Oscillations Detected with Simultaneous Magnetoencephalography and Electroencephalography as Biomarker of Pediatric Epilepsy10:22

Interictal High Frequency Oscillations Detected with Simultaneous Magnetoencephalography and Electroencephalography as Biomarker of Pediatric Epilepsy

Published on: December 6, 2016

20.6K

Related Concept Videos

Epilepsy and Seizures: Overview01:24

Epilepsy and Seizures: Overview

Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disease marked by recurrent, unpredictable seizures. These seizures are caused by abnormal electrical discharges in the brain, leading to behavior, sensation, or consciousness alterations. They can also cause transient impairment of awareness, interfering with daily activities.
Various factors can trigger epilepsy, including genetic factors, brain damage, metabolic causes, and unknown etiology. Diagnosis of epilepsy involves electroencephalography (EEG), which...
370
Seizures: Classification01:13

Seizures: Classification

Epilepsy is primarily characterized by unpredictable seizures, either provoked by an identifiable factor, such as injury or illness, or unprovoked, occurring spontaneously without apparent cause.
Seizures are typically classified into two main categories: focal and generalized seizures.
Focal Seizures
Focal seizures originate from specific regions of the brain. These seizures are further sub-classified into two types:
691
Antiepileptic Drugs: Modulators of Neurotransmitter Release Mediated by SV2A Protein01:20

Antiepileptic Drugs: Modulators of Neurotransmitter Release Mediated by SV2A Protein

Antiepileptic drugs, such as levetiracetam (Keppra) and brivaracetam (Briviact), have emerged as crucial tools in managing epilepsy. These medications exert their therapeutic effects by targeting the synaptic vesicle protein SV2A, a transmembrane glycoprotein primarily found in the brain.
SV2A is a transmembrane glycoprotein located predominantly in the brain, modulating the release of neurotransmitters for neuronal communication. Both levetiracetam and brivaracetam exhibit a high affinity for...
529
Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Drug Excretion01:26

Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Drug Excretion

In pediatric medicine, understanding the renal function and drug elimination nuances is crucial for administering safe and effective treatments. Newborns, in particular, display markedly slower renal functions than adults, profoundly affecting how drugs are cleared from their bodies. This slower drug clearance requires clinicians to extend the dosing intervals for many medications to prevent drug accumulation and toxicity while ensuring therapeutic efficacy.One key area where these adjustments...
39