AUTHOR=Specchio Nicola , Ferretti Alessandro , Pietrafusa Nicola , Trivisano Marina , Calabrese Costanza , Carfì Pavia Giusy , De Benedictis Alessandro , Marras Carlo Efisio , de Palma Luca , Vigevano Federico 

TITLE=Refractory Status Epilepticus in Genetic Epilepsy—Is Vagus Nerve Stimulation an Option?

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 11 - 2020

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2020.00443

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2020.00443

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=Abstract
Refractory and super-refractory status epilepticus (RSE, SRSE) are severe conditions that can have long-term neurological consequences with high morbidity and mortality rates. Usefulness of vagus nerve-stimulation (VNS) implantation during RSE has been documented within anecdotal cases and systematic reviews; however, use of VNS in RSE has not been widely adopted. We successfully implanted VNS in two patients with genetic epilepsy admitted in hospital for SRSE; detailed description of clinical findings and VNS parameters are provided. Our patients were implanted 25 and 58 days after status epilepticus (SE) onset and a stable remission of SE was observed after the seventh and tenth day after VNS implantation, respectively, without change in anti-seizure medication. We used a fast ramp -up of stimulation without evident side effects. Our results support consideration of VNS implantation as a safe and effective adjunctive treatment for SRSE.