Work

Perturbation‐induced responses improved seizure forecasting in epileptic rats

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: The unpredictability of seizures is one of the most challenging aspects of uncontrolled epilepsy for patients. Prior work forecasting seizure risk has measured changes in passive intracranial electroencephalographic (EEG) signals, but currently, there are no such clinical devices available. Based upon dynamical theory, we hypothesized that the response of the brain to perturbing stimulation provides a robust measurement of seizure risk that outperforms the results from passive EEG. METHODS: To test the hypothesis, we performed more than 8 weeks of periodic electrical stimulation and continuous EEG recordings in epileptic rats induced by intrahippocampal injection of tetanus toxin, in which seizures started spontaneously. RESULTS: Using the perturbation-evoked responses as a predictive biomarker of seizure risk, we built a preictal detection system that had excellent accuracy (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve > .95) at distinguishing the preictal from the interictal states. In comparison, a similar preictal detection system that used only passive features from the same experimental animals was unable to identify the preictal state better than chance. SIGNIFICANCE: Our results advocate for perturbation to be used for seizure prediction purposes, which could improve the efficacy of seizure forecasting when applied clinically.

Source: Epilepsia

DOI: 10.1002/epi.70196