Abnormal cognitive network interactions in Lennox-Gastaut syndrome: A potential mechanism of epileptic encephalopathy

AEL Warren; DF Abbott; DN Vaughan; GD Jackson; JS Archer

Journal article

Abnormal cognitive network interactions in Lennox-Gastaut syndrome: A potential mechanism of epileptic encephalopathy

AEL Warren, DF Abbott, DN Vaughan, GD Jackson, JS Archer

Epilepsia | WILEY | Published : 2016

DOI: 10.1111/epi.13342

Abstract

Objective In patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), recurrent epileptic activity is thought to contribute to impaired cognition (epileptic encephalopathy). Using concurrent electroencephalography-functional magnetic resonance imaging (EEG-fMRI), we recently showed that epileptiform discharges in LGS recruit large-scale networks that normally support key cognitive processes. In LGS, given that epileptic activity engages cognitive networks, and cognition is pervasively impaired, we hypothesized that cognitive network interactions in LGS are persistently abnormal. Methods We studied 15 LGS patients (mean age ± 1 standard deviation [SD] = 28.7 ± 10.6 years) and 17 healthy controls (mean ag..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Aaron Warren Author

David Abbott Author

David Vaughan Author

Graeme Jackson Author

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Grants

Awarded by National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC)

Funding Acknowledgements

We thank the patients and their families for participating in this research. We also thank Shawna Farquharson for coordinating MRI scanning, Dr. Danny Flanagan for reviewing EEG studies, Dr. Neelan Pillay for contributions to patient recruitment, and Dr. Spiros Panigirakis for assistance with figure preparation. This study was supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC), project grant number 628725 (J.A. and D.A.), and practitioner fellowship number 1060312 (G.J.). A.W. is supported by an Australian Postgraduate Award. D.A. is supported by a National Imaging Facility Fellowship. D.V. is supported by a NHMRC Postgraduate Scholarship. We also acknowledge the facilities and the scientific and technical assistance of the National Imaging Facility at the Florey node, and the support of the Victorian Government through the Operational Infrastructure Support Grant.