Anterior thalamic nucleus stimulation for epilepsy

Abstract

One option for treatment of medically refractory debilitating epilepsy is stimulation of the anterior thalamic nucleus, which projects via the cingulate gyrus to limbic structures and neocortex. In this chapter we describe the technique for anterior thalamic deep brain stimulation and report outcomes of early series of patients. The prospective double-blind randomized Stimulation of the Anterior Nucleus of the Thalamus for Epilepsy (SANTE) trial will evaluate the efficacy of this technique for epilepsy treatment. © 2007 Springer-Verlag.