No abstract

Rolandic epilepsy (RE) is the most common human epilepsy, affecting children between 3 and 12 years of age, boys more often than girls (3:2). Focal sharp waves in the centrotemporal area define the electroencephalographic (EEG) trait for the syndrome; are a feature of several related childhood epilepsies; and are freqently observed in common developmental disorders (e.g. speech dyspraxia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and developmental coordination disorder (DCD)). Here we report the first genome-wide linkage scan in RE for the EEG trait, centrotemporal sharp waves (CTS), with genomewide linkage of CTS to 11p13 (HLOD 4.30). Pure likelihood statistical analysis refined our linkage peak by fine-mapping CTS to variants in Elongator Protein Complex 4 (hELP4) in two independent datasets; the strongest evidence was with rs986527 in intron 9 of hELP4, providing a Likelihood Ratio of 629:1 (p=0.0002) in favor of an association. Resequencing of hELP4 coding, flanking and promoter regions revealed no significant exonic polymorphisms. This is the first report of a gene implicated in a common focal epilepsy and the first human disease association of hELP4. hELP4 is a component of the Elongator complex, involved in transcription and tRNA modification. Elongator depletion results in the brain-specific downregulation of genes implicated in cell motility and migration. We hypothesize that a non-coding mutation in hELP4 impairs brain-specific Elongator mediated interaction of genes implicated in brain development, resulting in susceptibility to seizures and neurodevelopmental disorders.

The responsive neurostimulation (RNS) system, an adjunctive treatment for pharmacoresistant partial-onset seizures with 1 or 2 foci, has been available to patients aged 18 years or older since the device’s FDA approval in 2013. Herein, the authors describe their off-label application of this technology in 2 pediatric patients and the consequent therapeutic benefit without surgical complications or treatment side effects. A 14-year-old nonambulatory, nonverbal male with severe developmental delay was considered for RNS therapy for medically and surgically refractory epilepsy with bilateral seizure onsets in the setting of a normal radiological examination and a known neuropathological diagnosis of type I cortical dysplasia. The RNS system was implanted with strip electrodes placed on the left lateral frontal and right lateral temporal neocortex. At 19 months’ follow-up, cortical stimulation resulted in sustained reduction in both seizure frequency—3 seizures per day down from 15 to 30 per day—and seizure severity. The patient subsequently underwent a trial of corticothalamic stimulation with a right temporal cortical strip and a left thalamic depth electrode, which resulted in a further 50% reduction in seizure frequency. In a second case, a 9-year-old right-handed female with radiological evidence of a small watershed infarct on the left and medically refractory seizures was referred for presurgical evaluation. Invasive monitoring revealed an unresectable seizure focus in the eloquent cortex of the left posterior frontal and parietal lobes. The RNS device was implanted with cortical leads placed at the putative seizure focus. At 21 months after surgery, the patient had been seizure free for 4 months, following a 17-month period in which the seizure frequency had decreased from 12 per month to 2 per month, with associated functional and behavioral improvement. The authors’ results suggest that RNS may be a palliative option for children with intractable seizures whose condition warrants off-label use of the surgical device. The improved therapeutic effect noted with time and sustained RNS treatment points to a possible neuromodulatory effect.

Patients in whom a vagal nerve stimulator is placed can have adverse side effects. These can be related to the surgical manipulation of the vagus nerve, resulting in a temporary paresis of the vocal folds. A second set of side effects is related to the actual electrical stimulation of the device, and these side effects can directly affect the laryngeal musculature.