AUTHOR=Harper Ronald M. , Hertling Dieter , Curtis Ashley , Sauerland Eberhardt K. , De Giorgio Christopher M. 

TITLE=Pilot Safety and Feasibility Study of Non-invasive Limb Proprioceptive Cerebellar Stimulation for Epilepsy

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2021.675947

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2021.675947

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=Cerebellar stimulation reduces seizures in animals and in humans with drug-resistant epilepsy. We applied continuous cutaneous vibratory stimulation to foot limb proprioceptive receptors to activate cerebellar, pontine, and thalamic structures in drug-resistant epilepsy patients for 8-hrs nocturnally up to 6-months after a 4-week pre-treatment control baseline. Seizure frequency was evaluated during the baseline control period, and at six, twelve, and twenty-four weeks after the control recordings. Five-subjects completed at least the first 6-week treatment. At 12-weeks, the mean seizure reduction was -28.0%; two subjects continued for 24 weeks, with a decline of -44.1 and -45.4%. Limb proprioceptive stimulation offers a non-invasive intervention to reduce seizures in people with epilepsy.