An epilepsy classification based on FFT and fully convolutional neural network nested LSTM

Epilepsy, which is associated with neuronal damage and functional decline, typically presents patients with numerous challenges in their daily lives. An early diagnosis plays a crucial role in managing the condition and alleviating the patients' suffering. Electroencephalogram (EEG)-based approaches are commonly employed for diagnosing epilepsy due to their effectiveness and non-invasiveness. In this study, a classification method is proposed that use fast Fourier Transform (FFT) extraction in conjunction with convolutional neural networks (CNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM) models.

Most methods use traditional frameworks to classify epilepsy, we propose a new approach to this problem by extracting features from the source data and then feeding them into a network for training and recognition. It preprocesses the source data into training and validation data and then uses CNN and LSTM to classify the style of the data.

Upon analyzing a public test dataset, the top-performing features in the fully CNN nested LSTM model for epilepsy classification are FFT features among three types of features. Notably, all conducted experiments yielded high accuracy rates, with values exceeding 96% for accuracy, 93% for sensitivity, and 96% for specificity. These results are further benchmarked against current methodologies, showcasing consistent and robust performance across all trials. Our approach consistently achieves an accuracy rate surpassing 97.00%, with values ranging from 97.95 to 99.83% in individual experiments. Particularly noteworthy is the superior accuracy of our method in the AB versus (vs.) CDE comparison, registering at 99.06%.

Our method exhibits precise classification abilities distinguishing between epileptic and non-epileptic individuals, irrespective of whether the participant's eyes are closed or open. Furthermore, our technique shows remarkable performance in effectively categorizing epilepsy type, distinguishing between epileptic ictal and interictal states versus non-epileptic conditions. An inherent advantage of our automated classification approach is its capability to disregard EEG data acquired during states of eye closure or eye-opening. Such innovation holds promise for real-world applications, potentially aiding medical professionals in diagnosing epilepsy more efficiently.