Pediatric Epilepsy Care
Our Approach
The Augusta University Pediatric Epilepsy Service seeks to serve the needs of children
with epilepsy and their families through advanced care treatment options. For many
children with epilepsy, seizures can be completely controlled with drug therapy. For
others, however, seizures can remain uncontrolled or poorly controlled with traditional
treatment. For these children, epilepsy presents a significant obstacle. Our aim is
to help these children and families overcome this obstacle and to achieve their full
potential.
Why Choose Us
If your child with epilepsy does not have satisfactory control over seizures, then
our program may be able to help. Our goals are to reduce the number of seizures to
the lowest level possible and to minimize the complications of treatment. Often, these
goals can be achieved by a combination of various types of treatment. For some patients,
Epilepsy Surgery is an effective option that minimizes the impact that epilepsy can
have on a child’s life.
The National Association of Epilepsy Centers recognizes the Augusta University Comprehensive Epilepsy Program as a Level IV center,
the highest designation given. Patients and their families benefit from the most up-to-date
technology and treatment available:
- Comprehensive Pediatric Neurology Team
- Complete evaluation for epilepsy surgical intervention, including intracranial electrodes,
VNS, and ketogenic diet
- Neuropsychological and psychosocial treatment and therapy
- Extensive, Specialized Nursing
- EEG technology for a full range of diagnostic services, medical treatments, and surgical
procedures
- Access to academic medical center epilepsy research and clinical trials
Diagnostic Tests and Procedures
At Children’s Hospital of Georgia, our pediatric epilepsy team can determine if medication
is the right care path for seizure management, but in many cases surgical intervention by our skilled pediatric epilepsy surgeons can provide the best solution to reduce
or stop seizures in children. Our team carefully evaluates the cause of seizures,
the frequency, severity and duration of seizures and if the area of the brain can
be identified where the seizures start. We also closely monitor any seizure activity
through electroencephalogram (EEG) testing to detect any abnormalities of the brain’s
activity and our pediatric neuropsychologist evaluates baseline cognitive function.
With a team approach for careful evaluation and treatment option review, it is determined
if surgery is the best care plan for each individual child. If this is the case, our
pediatric epilepsy surgeon can treat epilepsy through several surgical options, including:
interrupt the nerve pathways and slow or stop seizure impulses to the brain, implant
a device to control seizures or remove the seizure focus - that area of the brain
where seizures originate.
This same team sees your child regularly and knows your child – what is working and
what needs to be adjusted to restore or improve their quality of life. With all of
our pediatric specialists under one roof at Children’s Hospital of Georgia, we are
able to bring together any other pediatric specialists when needed for an integrated
delivery of care to improve the health of each child we see.
Pediatric EEG Lab
Electroencephalography (EEG) is a painless test that records the brain's electrical
activity through electrodes attached to the head. EEG helps doctors determine if the
brain's electrical activity is causing seizures.
The Pediatric EEG lab at Children’s Hospital of Georgia is uniquely designed and staffed
by physicians, nurses and technologists specially trained to care for kids.
We understand that babies and children are growing and need special care. That’s why
we stay on the leading edge of safe EEG technology to help doctors diagnose childhood
seizures and neurological disorders. A board certified pediatric neurologist reads
each EEG test. And, our specialists work hand in hand with the Augusta University
Medical Center's Pediatric Neuroscience Center to determine the best treatment and
care plan.
As part of our commitment to Patient Family Centered Care, parents are encouraged
to accompany their child to the test and our staff explains each step of the procedure.