Epilepsy

Treatment in Minnesota

Each year, epilepsy specialists at Mayo Clinic in Rochester coordinate care for more than 3,000 children and adults who are diagnosed with epilepsy. The full range of treatment options is available to all patients, and treatment and management plans are created for each patient.

A patient who has seizures that start in one part of the brain may be a candidate for epilepsy surgery. Epilepsy surgery involves removal of that part of the brain which is giving rise to a patient's seizures.

Surgery for epilepsy has been performed at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for 40 years. Two hundred children and adults undergo evaluation for epilepsy surgery in the Adult and Pediatric Inpatient Video-EEG monitoring units at Mayo Clinic each year. Innovations developed at Mayo Clinic, including SISCOM, have led to improvements in the ability to pinpoint seizure onset, allowing surgeons to more easily target areas for surgery. Awake brain surgery also allows surgeons to pinpoint seizure "hot spots" without damaging surrounding brain tissue.

For more on treatment, see treatment options for epilepsy.

Treatment Team

Localization of seizure onset is challenging, and requires a multispecialty approach, drawing from the skills of experts in several areas, including Neurology, Neuroradiology, Child and Adolescent Neurology, Nuclear Medicine, Neuropsychology, and Neurosurgery.

The large numbers of patients seen at Mayo Clinic help the medical staff maintain a high degree of skill in the evaluation and treatment of patients with epilepsy.

Appointments

Phone the Neurology Appointment Center at (507) 284-1588 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Central time, Monday through Friday.