Epilepsy News and Research

Latest Epilepsy News and Research

New tool can effectively determine likelihood of drugs in the environment

Most synthetic chemical products used in consumer goods end up unchanged in the environment. Given the risks this could pose for the environment and human health, researchers from the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) have developed a new tool to effectively predict what will happen to current and future pharmaceutical products.

29 Jul 2011

FDA issues Refusal to File letter for Eisai's perampanel NDA to treat partial-onset seizures

Eisai Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a Refusal to File letter in response to the company's New Drug Application (NDA) for perampanel (E2007), an investigational drug, for the treatment of partial-onset seizures associated with epilepsy which was submitted in May 2011.

29 Jul 2011

New candidate gene for human benign childhood epilepsies

A new epilepsy gene, LGI2, has been found in the Lagotto Romagnolo dogs, known from their gift for truffle hunting. The gene discovery made by Professor Hannes Lohi and his research group at the University of Helsinki and the Folkhälsan Rsearch Center offers a new candidate gene for human benign childhood epilepsies characterized by seizure remission.

28 Jul 2011

Natus Medical second quarter revenue increases 10% to $58.1 million

Natus Medical Incorporated today announced financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2011.

28 Jul 2011

Cognitive behavioral therapy and self-help may improve unexplained symptoms of pain, fatigue

A new type of therapy may help people with symptoms such as pain, weakness, or dizziness that can't be explained by an underlying disease, according to a study published in the July 27, 2011, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

28 Jul 2011

UCSF neurosurgery shows promise against severe epilepsy

Two-thirds of people with severe and otherwise untreatable epilepsy were completely cured of their frequent seizures after undergoing neurosurgery at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center, according to a new study that examined 143 of these patients two years after their operations.

22 Jul 2011

The Joint Commission certifies 7 disease-specific programs at Children's Medical Center

The Joint Commission has certified seven disease-specific programs at Children's Medical Center Dallas, www.childrens.com. Children's is the only pediatric hospital in the United States with more than two such designations of excellence, making the Dallas hospital a leader in health care reform.

22 Jul 2011

Longer looks: The effect of bedside manner; digging deep on Rick Scott's business deals; migraines and sexism

Even if your doctor doesn't have the best beside manner, you're probably willing to excuse her behavior as long as she treats your condition and makes you healthy again, right? Well, you might not want to be so forgiving. It turns out that rudeness and incivility among doctors, in particular in the operating room, can actually lead to poorer health outcomes and even higher death rates among patients.

22 Jul 2011

Public disclosure of Bachmann's migraine condition raises much-needed awareness

University of Vermont Professor of Neurology and migraine expert Robert Shapiro, M.D., Ph.D., says U.S. Representative and presidential candidate Michele Bachmann's public disclosure of her migraine condition has brought much-needed awareness to this disabling, often-stigmatized disorder, which afflicts millions of Americans.

21 Jul 2011

Experts present new research at 2011 Alzheimer's Association ICAD

Experts from the Center of Excellence on Brain Aging at NYU Langone Medical Center will present new research at the 2011 Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's disease to be held in Paris, France from July 16 - 21.

21 Jul 2011

Excess brain activity in aMCI patients contributes to brain dysfunction underlying memory loss

An existing anti-seizure drug improves memory and brain function in adults with a form of cognitive impairment that often leads to full-blown Alzheimer's disease, a Johns Hopkins University study has found.

21 Jul 2011

Study examines cost-effectiveness of MS drugs in the U.S.

A new study examining the cost-effectiveness of drugs to treat multiple sclerosis (MS) in the United States finds that the health gains from these drugs come at a very high cost compared to basic therapy to control the symptoms of MS and compared to treatments for other chronic diseases.

21 Jul 2011

Intense visual stimulation renders nerve cells more receptive to subsequent learning

Dr. Ed Ruthazer is a mapmaker but, his landscape is the developing brain - specifically the neuronal circuitry, which is the network of connections between nerve cells. His research at The Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital - The Neuro at McGill University, reveals the brain as a dynamic landscape where connections between nerves are plastic, changing and adapting to the demands of the environment.

21 Jul 2011

Pfizer enters definitive merger agreement with Icagen

Pfizer Inc. and Icagen, Inc. today announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement. Pfizer, which currently owns approximately 11% of Icagen's fully diluted shares, will acquire the remaining 8.3 million shares at a price of $6.00 per share.

21 Jul 2011

VIVUS to present topiramate exposure, birth defect data at IEC

VIVUS, Inc. today announced that on August 31, 2011, during the late breaking poster session at the 29th International Epilepsy Congress in Rome, Italy, Dr. Alison Pack, Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology, Department of Neurology, Columbia University Medical Center, will present the results of a retrospective study of medical claims data on oral clefts (OC) and major congenital malformations (MCMs) associated with in utero topiramate exposure.

20 Jul 2011

Texas Children's Hospital uses new surgical approach for treating epilepsy

Texas Children's Hospital is the first hospital in the world to use real-time MRI-guided thermal imaging and laser technology to destroy lesions in the brain that cause epilepsy and uncontrollable seizures.

19 Jul 2011

First neurobiological evidence for theory of episodic memory

Almost everyone has experienced one memory triggering another, but explanations for that phenomenon have proved elusive. Now, University of Pennsylvania researchers have provided the first neurobiological evidence that memories formed in the same context become linked, the foundation of the theory of episodic memory.

19 Jul 2011

Upsher-Smith initiates USL261 ARTEMIS1 Phase III study for seizure clusters in epilepsy patients

Upsher-Smith Laboratories, Inc. announced today the initiation of a Phase III clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of USL261, an investigational intranasal midazolam, for the rescue treatment of seizures in patients on stable anti-epileptic drug (AED) regimens who require control of intermittent bouts of increased seizure activity, frequently referred to as seizure clusters. USL261 has been granted orphan drug designation for this use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

18 Jul 2011

NSVascular signs exclusive license with UCLA for Thin-Film Nitinol technology

NeuroSigma, Inc., a Los Angeles-based medical device company, today announced the formation of a majority owned subsidiary, NSVascular, Inc. and the signing of an exclusive license with the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) covering its medical applications of Thin-Film Nitinol (TFN) technology. Nitinol is a superelastic nickel and titanium alloy with unique properties that allow deformation and subsequent full recovery of the original shape upon exposure to body heat.

18 Jul 2011

Gladstone plans to create new center for Alzheimer's disease research

The Gladstone Institutes today announced plans to create a Center for Comprehensive Alzheimer's Disease Research, offering new hope for the millions of families stricken by this debilitating neurodegenerative disease.

16 Jul 2011