MR-guided stereotactic laser ablation of epileptogenic foci in children

Objective For about 30% of epilepsy patients, pharmaceutical therapy fails to control their seizures. MR-guided laser interstitial thermal therapy (MRgLITT) allows for real-time thermal monitoring of the ablation process and feedback control over the laser energy delivery. We report on minimally invasive surgical techniques of MRgLITT and short‐term follow-up results from the first five pediatric cases in which this system was used to ablate focal epileptic lesions. Methods We studied the patients with MRI of the brain, localized the seizure with video‐EEG and used the Visualase Thermal Therapy 25 System for laser ablation of their seizure foci. Results All 5 patients are seizure free and there were no complications as of 2–13‐month follow-up. Conclusion MR‐guided laser interstitial thermal therapy has a significant potential to be a minimally invasive alternative to more conventional techniques to surgically treat medically refractory epilepsy in children.