Abstracts

Rationale: To analyze efficacy and quality of life (QoL) data in patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy treated with adjunctive Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) Therapy at the Hospital Domingo Luciani in Caracas, Venezuela. Methods: 23 patients (13M/10F) were prospectively evaluated between 2000 and 2005. Mean age: 23.3 ± 9.52 years (median, 24; range, 7 – 42 years). Mild mental retardation was observed in 7 patients, moderate in 7 and severe in 1; 8 patients had a normal mental development. Nine patients had partial seizures and 14 had multiple types of seizures. Seizures were counted at baseline and after 6 months (N=23), 12 months (N=12) and 24 months (N=10) of treatment with VNS Therapy. QoL data from 18 patients were collected at baseline and after 6 months of VNS Therapy using the FEGEA Scale. Results: There was a mean seizure reduction of 77.9% (95% CI: [58.5; 97.2]), 95.9% (95% CI: [93.6; 98.2]), and 95.8% (95% CI: [93.1; 98.4]) after 6, 12 and 24 months of treatment with adjunctive VNS Therapy, respectively. Median seizure reduction was 95.0% (95% CI: [86.7; 96.7], p<0.0001), 97.1% (95% CI: [93.3; 98.7], p=0.0005), and 96.4% (95% CI: [93.3; 98.7], p=0.0020) after 6, 12 and 24 months of VNS Therapy, respectively. Significant improvements in QoL were observed in all evaluated domains of the FEGEA Scale after 6 months of treatment. Conclusions: Our experience in Venezuela shows that adjunctive VNS Therapy remains an excellent option for the treatment of patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy. VNS Therapy is also associated with improvements in quality of life.