Epilepsy Quarterly Fall 93 by Gregory D. Cascino, MD, Associate Professor of Neurology, Mayo Medical School, Consultant in Neurology, Mayo Clinic and Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota Surgical treatment is an important alternative to medical therapy in patients with intractable partial epilepsy.
Partial epilepsy is the most common seizure disorder in adult patients.
2 MRI is clearly superior to x-ray computed axial tomography in diagnosing patients being considered for epilepsy surgery. Structural neuroimaging studies may identify the etiology of the seizure disorder and assist in localizing the epileptogenic zone, ie, the site of seizure onset. 2 MRI may determine patient selection for surgery, and directly affects the presurgical evaluation and operative strategy. The results of neuroimaging studies are of important predictive value in assessing the potential efficacy of epilepsy surgery. Another potential use of MRI includes its role during stereotactically derived surgical procedures, eg, implantation of depth electrodes and computer-assisted lesionectomy.