Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery
Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery
Our Approach
Any childhood illness or issue can be very overwhelming, but when your child has experienced
even one seizure – it becomes especially frightening. Epilepsy treatment for children
is very different from adult care. It is very specialized due to the ongoing brain
development of our young patients. Focused epilepsy care for children needs to include
appropriate monitoring, pediatric specific medications and surgical options that are
appropriate for each child at their individual phase of growth and development. Children’s
Hospital of Georgia provides board-certified pediatric neurologists and neurosurgeons
that have advanced training in the care of epilepsy for children.
Called epileptologists, our pediatric epilepsy specialists are neurologists that have at least two extra years of specialized training in the
medical, psychological, social and educational issues that can be involved with children
with epilepsy. By focusing on just this clinical specialty, their experience and expertise
allows them to better determine an accurate diagnosis and the optimum treatment plan
as soon as possible. Especially with children, time is precious to determine the correct
treatment plan because any neurological issue can impact growth and development milestones.
Why Choose Us
Innovative Surgical Options for Seizure Management
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.
Research Supports Surgical Intervention for Epilepsy
Research has shown that surgery for temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) has become highly
effective. In this most common form of epilepsy in children, TLE surgical intervention
has shown a 58% seizure free rate of success as compared to only an 8% seizure free
rate with only medication therapy.
Multidisciplinary Care for Disease Management
Our entire team of epilepsy specialists meet every week to determine each patient’s
short and long term care plans with careful evaluation of progress and next steps.
Our team includes:
- Pediatric Epileptologists
- Pediatric Neurologists
- Pediatric Neurosurgeons
- Pediatric Neuroradiologists
- Pediatric Neuropsychologists
- Electroencephalogram (EEG) Technologists
- Pediatric Transport Team
- Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
- Speech Pathologists
- Nutritionists/Dietitians
- Pediatric Therapists
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.
Why Patient and Family Centered Care Matters
As with any childhood short term illness or longer term disease management, the health
of any child affects the whole family. That’s why at Children’s Hospital of Georgia,
we take care of the whole family and the whole child - not just the disease. We care
about how your life changes with more doctor appointments and we want to help make
your life easier and more manageable with a diagnosis such as epilepsy. So, we offer
care at CHOG all under one roof, with coordinated appointments and convenient locations
closer to home. We provide Child Life Specialists that normalize care at the hospital and help children and families understand what
to expect, especially when surgery is planned. Please let us know how we can help
– just let anyone on your child’s care team know about any special needs or concerns.
For More Information about Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery
If you suffer from seizures or would like more information about pediatric epilepsy
treatment options, please call our Epilepsy Coordinator at 706-721-4626 today. You
may also e-mail us at epilepsy@augusta.edu.
