AUTHOR=Wang Wei , Zhou Qilin , Zhang Xiating , Li Liping , Xu Cuiping , Piao Yueshan , Wu Siqi , Wang Yajie , Du Wei , Zhao Zhilian , Lin Yicong , Wang Yuping 

TITLE=Pilot Study of Voxel-Based Morphometric MRI Post-processing in Patients With Non-lesional Operculoinsular Epilepsy

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 11 - 2020

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2020.00177

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2020.00177

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=Objective: The aim of this study was to use voxel-based MRI post-processing in detection of subtle FCD in drug-resistant operculoinsular epilepsy patients with negative presurgical MRI, and by combining magnetoencephalography (MEG) to improve the localization of epileptogenic zone.
Methods: Operculoinsular epilepsy patients with a negative presurgical MRI were included in this study. MRI postprocessing was performed using a Morphometric Analysis Program (MAP) on T1-weighted volumetric MRI. Clinical information including semiology, MEG, scalp electroencephalogram (EEG), intracranial EEG and surgical strategy was retrospectively reviewed. The pertinence of MAP-positive areas was confirmed by surgical outcome and pathology.
Results: A total of 20 patients were diagnosed with operculoinsular epilepsy had nonlesional MRI during 2010-2018, of which 11 patients with resective surgeries were included. Four out of 11 patients had positive MAP results. The MAP positive rate was 36.4%. The positive regions were in insular in one patient and operculoinsular regions in three patients. Three of the four patients who were MAP-positive got seizure-free after successfully resect the MAP-positive and MEG-positive regions (the pathology results were FCD IIb in two patients and FCD IIa in one patient).
Conclusions: MAP is a useful tool in detection the epileptogenic lesions in patients with MRI-negative operculoinsular epilepsy. Notably, in order to make a right surgical regime decision, MAP results should always be interpreted in the context of the patient’s anatomo-electroclinical presentation.