Modern drugs continue to be developed for treating various types of seizures. However, in some patients seizures are not well controlled even after trying a number of drugs, or the medications may have side effects that are not well tolerated. Surgery should be considered in these cases. It is recommended that patients wait only a few years to try various epilepsy medications before evaluation for surgery. Delay only results in further hardships for the patient and family, sometimes with lasting effects, especially for youngsters in school or starting their careers.
Surgery is a well-established approach to treating epilepsy.
For example, at UCLA surgical treatment has been offered for more than 30 years. The most commonly performed epilepsy surgery is for patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy, which is often resistant to medications. In this type of surgery, the area of the brain containing the seizure focus is located by a series of tests, and then resected. An important aspect in planning for the surgery is determining which areas should not be removed because they are essential for certain functions. Tests are done for language, memory, movement, vision or whatever function is controlled by the part of the brain that is close to the seizure focus.