Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Electroconvulsive Therapy

Electroconvulsive Therapy

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), or shock therapy, remains a critical biomedical intervention for severe, treatment-resistant depression. While its origins can be traced back to Hippocrates' observations that malaria-induced convulsions alleviated mental illness, modern ECT has evolved significantly from its earlier, more primitive applications. First introduced in 1938 by Ugo Cerletti and his colleagues, ECT involves inducing controlled seizures using electrical currents. In its early...

Arteries of the Lower Limbs

Arteries of the Lower Limbs

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...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Canine Idiopathic Epilepsy as a Natural Animal Model for Human Epilepsy: A Scoping Review Highlighting Metabolic Perspectives Beyond the Brain.

Nutrients·2026

Same author

Case Report: Twenty years of metreleptin therapy in congenital generalized lipodystrophy type 1: the longest reported follow-up to date.

Frontiers in endocrinology·2026

Same author

Lipid clinics worldwide: harmonization and guidance on how to optimally organize and fund. European Atherosclerosis Society consensus statement across 55 countries and more than 500 lipid clinics.

Atherosclerosis·2026

Same author

Chronic Subthreshold Cortical Stimulation for Paracentral Epilepsy-A Systematic Review.

Neuromodulation : journal of the International Neuromodulation Society·2026

Same author

Palliative Care in Europe: Safeguarding Compassion Amidst Changing End-of-Life Policies and Expanding Access to Medically Assisted Dying Position Statement on behalf of the European Academy of Neurology, the European Federation of Neurological Associations and OneNeurology.

European journal of neurology·2026

Same author

Epidemiology and Economic Burden of Sleep Disorders in Europe.

European journal of neurology·2026

Same journal

Neuropathic pain in cerebral palsy and related genetic conditions: A scoping review of prevalence, characteristics, and management.

Developmental medicine and child neurology·2026

Same journal

Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination global scores for predicting neurodevelopmental outcomes after 2 years of age: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Developmental medicine and child neurology·2026

Same journal

Seizure worsening and sodium channel blockers in HCN1-related epilepsies: A case series.

Developmental medicine and child neurology·2026

Same journal

What is the impact of childhood-onset disability research - and what should it be?

Developmental medicine and child neurology·2026

Same journal

Sleep disturbances in children with cerebral palsy, their siblings, and parents: A qualitative descriptive study.

Developmental medicine and child neurology·2026

Same journal

Reframing early socio-emotional risk in infants at high risk of cerebral palsy beyond motor outcomes.

Developmental medicine and child neurology·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 23, 2025

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

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

Published on: December 6, 2016

Neurostimulation for childhood epilepsy.

Ann Mertens¹, Paul Boon^1,2, Kristl Vonck¹

¹Department of Neurology, 4Brain, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium.

Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology

|July 14, 2023

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Neurostimulation offers valuable options for managing childhood epilepsy, with Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) showing similar safety and efficacy to adults. Other methods like deep brain stimulation (DBS) and responsive neurostimulation (RNS) also show promise for seizure reduction.

More Related Videos

Performing Behavioral Tasks in Subjects with Intracranial Electrodes

Performing Behavioral Tasks in Subjects with Intracranial Electrodes

Published on: October 2, 2014

Direct-current Stimulation and Multi-electrode Array Recording of Seizure-like Activity in Mice Brain Slice Preparation

Direct-current Stimulation and Multi-electrode Array Recording of Seizure-like Activity in Mice Brain Slice Preparation

Published on: June 7, 2016

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 23, 2025

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

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

Published on: December 6, 2016

Performing Behavioral Tasks in Subjects with Intracranial Electrodes

Performing Behavioral Tasks in Subjects with Intracranial Electrodes

Published on: October 2, 2014

Direct-current Stimulation and Multi-electrode Array Recording of Seizure-like Activity in Mice Brain Slice Preparation

Direct-current Stimulation and Multi-electrode Array Recording of Seizure-like Activity in Mice Brain Slice Preparation

Published on: June 7, 2016

Area of Science:

Pediatric Neurology
Epilepsy Management
Neuroscience

Background:

Childhood epilepsy presents unique challenges due to the developing brain's vulnerability to seizures.
Established neurostimulation techniques for adults have limited data in pediatric populations.
There is a need to evaluate the efficacy and safety of neurostimulation in children.

Purpose of the Study:

To review current evidence on neurostimulation modalities for treating childhood epilepsy.
To assess the safety and effectiveness of Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS), Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS), and Responsive Neurostimulation (RNS) in pediatric patients.
To explore emerging non-invasive techniques like transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS).

Main Methods:

Systematic review of existing literature, including retrospective and open-label studies.
Analysis of data from pediatric clinical trials and case studies on VNS, DBS, and RNS.
Evaluation of findings from small randomized controlled trials and open-label studies on tDCS.

Main Results:

Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) demonstrates a comparable safety and efficacy profile in children to that observed in adults.
Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) and Responsive Neurostimulation (RNS) show potential for reducing seizure frequency in children with minimal complications, despite limited available evidence.
Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has yielded promising but inconsistent results in preliminary studies for childhood epilepsy.

Conclusions:

Neurostimulation, particularly VNS, is a viable and effective treatment option for childhood epilepsy.
DBS and RNS represent promising avenues for refractory epilepsy in children, warranting further investigation.
Non-invasive techniques like tDCS require more robust research to establish their role in pediatric epilepsy management.