Minimally invasive surgical approach for intractable seizure

Minimally invasive procedures (multiple subpial transection, topectomy and amygdalahippocampotomy) were used to treat 24 patients with intractable seizures. The seizure foci were in both hemispheres in 3 patients, all 4 lobes of a hemisphere in 1 patient, 3 lobes of a hemisphere in 5 patients, 2 lobes of a hemisphere in 11 patients and the temporal lobe alone in 4 patients. The longest follow-up is 41 months, with a median of 18 months. Sixteen patients have a follow-up of more than 1 years, with excellent results in 10 (66%) and good in the remaining 6 (38%). There were no permanent complications These results are encouraging, because the majority of the patients were poor candidates for surgery.