We investigated the lived experiences of individuals within the ecosystem of Dravet syndrome (DS) (patients, families, healthcare professionals, patient representatives) to gain a holistic understanding of the reality of caring for an individual with DS.

The purpose of the second meeting of the Epilepsy Study Group of the Italian Society of Neurology, held in Sicily, Italy, and titled "Episicily" was on a new holistic approach to people with epilepsy. The most important points that the experts at the conference addressed and considered significant were the modern clinical approach of a physician dedicated to epilepsy that requests multidisciplinary collaboration and a dynamic vision throughout new diagnostic procedures. Then, the new antiseizures medications and their peculiarities, the role of neuroinflammation and finally the bidirectional relationship with sleep disorders.

There is little research about the questions asked by people with epilepsy, and how these are answered. Information sources include standardised medical or charity websites, responses generated by artificial intelligence paradigms and informal peer support.

To investigate social cognitive functions, specifically theory of mind (ToM) and alexithymia, in patients with cryptogenic frontal lobe epilepsy (FLE) without detectable structural brain lesions, and examine their associations with clinical, and demographic characteristics.

Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP) is a major cause of epilepsy-related mortality, yet discussions about SUDEP in clinical settings remain inconsistent. This study aimed to assess the perspectives, practices, and barriers related to SUDEP counselling for epilepsy professionals in Spain.

This review analyzes 155 papers published between 1966 and 2025 examining epilepsy in 108 famous persons (see Supplementary Material for complete list), using the PubMed "famous persons" MeSH term combined with epilepsy-related search terms. Vincent van Gogh (37 papers, 23.9 %) and Fyodor Dostoevsky (34 papers, 21.9 %) dominated the literature, together accounting for 45.8 % of all publications. Writers and artists received the most scholarly attention, with 72.3 % of papers published after 2000. Most papers discussed epilepsy generally without specifying type, while temporal lobe epilepsy was the most specified subtype. Notable biases were identified: 89.8 % male subjects and 44.0 % from 19th-20th centuries. The extreme concentration on Van Gogh and Dostoevsky, combined with significant gender and temporal biases, raises questions about publication bias and the perpetuation of medical mythology. While retrospective diagnosis remains methodologically challenging, this literature provides valuable insights into changing medical paradigms and societal attitudes toward epilepsy.

Previous studies have suggested that social cognition abilities do not change following surgical treatment for temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). However, the follow-up period in these studies was no longer than 14 months. The present study investigated the long-term effects of epilepsy surgery on social cognition, extending the follow-up period to an average of 12 years (range 7-15 years).

Transferring adolescents with epilepsy (AWE) to adult care is a complex process, yet there is limited data on its overall epidemiology and clinical implications.

To examine initial doses of cenobamate that were associated with seizure freedom (100% seizure reduction) in a subset of patients from a large, open-label, phase 3 safety study.

Epilepsy is a complex neurological disease affecting millions worldwide. Beyond seizure management, individuals with epilepsy face significant emotional, cognitive, and social challenges that impact their quality of life and societal participation. This qualitative systematic review explored the lived experiences of adults with epilepsy in Western countries, focusing on their participation in daily life.

Compared to patients with well-controlled epilepsy, those with drug-resistant epilepsy often experience greater morbidity, mortality, and accelerated aging. Plasma biomarkers pTau217 and pTau181 align with cerebrospinal fluid tau values and amyloid PET imaging, correlating with Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. These minimally invasive markers may help explore links between neurodegeneration and epilepsy. This study assessed plasma pTau217 and pTau181 levels in patients with drug-resistant (DR) and well-controlled (C) epilepsy to determine whether poor seizure control correlates with elevated biomarkers.

This study was aimed to explore the mechanisms of seizure initiation, propagation, and termination in childhood absence epilepsy (CAE) by analyzing dynamic whole-brain network changes.

Current therapeutic interventions towards cognitive deficits in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) remain suboptimal due to incomplete elucidation of the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms. Emerging evidence implicates synapse loss as a critical neuropathological substrate associated with cognitive dysfunction. Given that synapse constitute the fundamental structural units of neural circuit and established disruption of cognitive networks in epilepsy, this study innovatively explores epileptic cognitive network alteration from synaptic viewpoint.

Lamotrigine (LTG) and Levetiracetam (LEV) are anti-seizure medications (ASMs) widely used for treatment of women with epilepsy (WWE) of childbearing age due to low teratogenic potential. Physiological changes during gestation results in enhanced clearance. Drug level monitoring and frequent dose adjustments are required to avoid decline in serum levels and compromised seizure control. Postpartum, physiological changes reverse and ASM clearance trends back to pre-pregnancy rate. Rapid metabolic changes make drug level monitoring and dose adjustments challenging. A delay in dose decrement could result in toxicity. The optimal postpartum dose reduction rate hasn't been established.

Epilepsy is a neurological condition that can interfere with driving abilities through seizures and cognitive impairments. While legal frameworks often regulate driving eligibility, little is known about how people with epilepsy perceive and adapt their driving in everyday life. This study aimed to examine driving habits, self-perceived difficulties, and adaptive behaviors in people with epilepsy compared to a control group. A total of 665 participants (103 individuals with epilepsy and 562 individuals without epilepsy) completed an online questionnaire covering driving habits, avoidance behaviors, and compensatory strategies. Statistical analyses were conducted to compare responses between groups. Contrary to expectations, individuals with epilepsy do not report more driving difficulties than controls. On the other hand, they appear to have more avoidance behavior and compensatory strategies. They were more likely to avoid certain situations (e.g., night driving, long trips) and to implement proactive adjustments (e.g., driving only when feeling well, taking shorter trips). People with epilepsy appear to implement self-regulation strategies that reduce their exposure to difficult driving conditions. These strategies likely help maintain safe driving practices but may also restrict mobility and autonomy. Given that these data are based on self-reports the interpretation of the results must be cautious, particularly since people with epilepsy did not report more difficulties than controls. We propose two interpretations (i.e., adaptive hypothesis and anticipatory hypothesis) that are not mutually exclusive. Future studies should integrate these perspectives with objective assessments to provide more robust evidence for clinical and regulatory recommendations.

Functional seizures (FS) are often associated with substantial diagnostic delay. This can impact patients' quality of life, delay appropriate treatment and cause iatrogenic harms. The delay is also hypothesised to be worse in low- to middle-income countries (LMICs), but there is a dearth of information on the extent and reasons for this in LMIC settings, such as South Africa.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neuropsychiatric comorbidity in pediatric epilepsy. Although the cognitive effects of epilepsy are well documented, the impact of ADHD as a comorbidity on neurocognitive outcomes remains unclear. This systematic review evaluates cognitive performance in pediatric patients with both epilepsy and ADHD. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, searches were conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library and LILACS. Studies were included if they involved patients aged less than or equal to 18 years diagnosed with both epilepsy and ADHD. Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Methodological quality was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS), ROBINS-I and NIH/NHLBI tools. Results indicated that children with both epilepsy and ADHD exhibited more severe cognitive impairments than those with epilepsy only, ADHD only or healthy controls. These included lower Full-Scale and Verbal IQ scores and more frequent omission and commission errors, as well as increased reaction-time variability in attention tasks. Across studies, domains most affected included perceptual-motor function and executive function, as illustrated in a heat map summarizing the distribution and severity of cognitive impairments. These findings underscore that ADHD comorbidity in pediatric epilepsy is associated with exacerbated neurocognitive deficits, highlighting the need for early identification and tailored interventions to support cognitive development.

Epileptic seizures (ES) and functional seizures (FS) commonly coexist. People with both conditions (ES + FS) report different contributing factors to quality of life (QOL) compared to people with ES only. However, a distinct core outcome set (COS) for measuring QOL among people with ES + FS does not exist.

Quality of life is an important outcome measure for patients with epilepsy (PWE). However, data on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in PWE treated with cenobamate (CNB), a new antiseizure medication (ASM) that achieves a high level of seizure freedom, is scarce. These data are especially important for evaluating the use of CNB in early therapy lines for focal-onset seizures.

To summarize the genotype-phenotype characteristics of pediatric epilepsy with pathogenic copy number variations (CNVs) and explore the potential pathogenic mechanisms of the CNVs, we recruited a cohort of 418 epilepsy patients (age: 0-18 years) from the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University between June 2016 to June 2024. Patients were evaluated using CNV sequencing (CNV-seq). Functional enrichment for dosage-sensitive genes in the CNVs were performed using ClusterProfiler. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks for the proteins encoded by these genes were analyzed using the STRING database. We identified 40 patients carrying at least one pathogenic CNVs [detection rate: 9.57 % (40/418)]. A total of 39 microdeletions and five microduplications were identified, ranging in size from 0.11 Mb to 45.53 Mb. The 16p11.2 microdeletion was the most frequently detected (16/418). Thirty patients presented with comorbidities, including 11 with congenital heart disease and 9 exhibiting distinctive facial dysmorphism. Dosage-sensitive genes were significantly enriched in forebrain development, telencephalon development, and the neuronal cell body. Proteins encoded by these dosage-sensitive genes exhibited extensive interaction networks. In conclusion,CNVs are an important cause of pediatric epilepsy and involve dosage-sensitive genes that may cause disease by affecting cortical development and the neuronal cell body. There is a higher probability of identifying a pathogenic CNV when epilepsy is co-morbid with intellectual disability or other systemic diseases.

The association between sleep quality and quality of life (QOL) in patients with focal epilepsy remains poorly understood. This study aimed to evaluate sleep quality within this population and investigate its mediating effect on QOL.

To evaluate neuropsychiatric burden in the understudied population of patients with dual diagnoses of epileptic seizures (ES) and functional seizures (FS) who have received vagus nerve stimulation (VNS).

Epileptic prodromes have historically received limited attention due to their subjective nature and limited localizing value. However, they hold potential for seizure prediction, which could significantly influence epilepsy management.

To assess the psychiatric side effects of cenobamate (CNB) in adults with focal-onset drug-resistant epilepsy, evaluate its impact on pre-existing psychiatric comorbidities, and identify potential risk factors contributing to psychiatric symptom development.

Status epilepticus (SE) is a life-threatening condition and requires prompt recognition and timely initiation of treatment. We aimed to define EEG characteristics in initial ictal EEG recordings predicting response to 1 and 2 line SE therapy and allowing for early identification of refractory SE (rSE) with need for anesthesia and intensive care management.

To evaluate the psychometric properties of the Quality of Life Inventory -Disability (QI-Disability) for individuals with Dravet syndrome (DS) or Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), two rare developmental and epileptic encephalopathy conditions.

Previous research utilizing neighborhood data has identified a three-factor structure underlying the Area Deprivation Index (ADI), a metric of neighborhood disadvantage. The three factors identified are Financial Strength, Economic Hardship and Inequality, and Educational Attainment. Here, we examine how these distinct dimensions of deprivation are associated with demographic and clinical characteristics, and mood and cognitive outcomes in patients with epilepsy.

The drivers of chronic disease in people with epilepsy with epilepsy (PWE) are unknown. We aimed to identify the role of health risk factors, polypharmacy, and medication usage in (PWE) according to age, sex, epilepsy types, epilepsy duration and resistance to treatment and their relevance to multimorbidity in epilepsy.

To report on the Italian validation of the Child Epilepsy Quality of Life Questionnaire (CHEQOL-25), including both the child self-report and parent-proxy versions.