Authors :
Presenting Author: Yash Agarwal, BS – Dayton Children's Hospital
Brian Ervin, PhD – Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Anna Byars, PhD – University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Jason Buroker, BS – Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Craig Scholle, BS – Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Hansel Greiner, MD – University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Skoch Jesse, MD – University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Francesco Mangano, DO – University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Ravindra Arya, MD, DM – Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Rationale:
Stereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) offers a high-resolution method to localize the epileptogenic zone (EZ), enabling tailored surgical interventions. SEEG also offers an opportunity to map language function using auditory and visual naming (AN/VN), however, the significance of naming response latencies has remained poorly understood. This study quantified the variation in AN and VN response latencies, their relationship with cognitive measures, duration of epilepsy, and EZ location.
Methods:
Twenty-seven native English-speaking patients undergoing standard-of-care SEEG at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital participated in VN and AN tasks. During the naming tasks, response latencies were electronically recorded from stimulus termination to voice onset. Kernel density estimation was used to derive modal latencies, which were input in a k-means clustering algorithm. Cluster profiles were analyzed for associations with clinical variables (age, epilepsy duration, EZ location, and processing speed subtest of Wechsler scale) using linear mixed-effects models.
Results:
Cluster analysis identified two patient subgroups: one with short latencies and high peak densities (n=10), and another with long latencies and short peak densities (n=17). The short-latency group had significantly shorter epilepsy durations (3.2 vs. 6.1 years, p=0.001) and more frequently localized EZs (80% vs. 29%, p=0.018). Seizure freedom was more prevalent in this group post-surgery (80% vs. 41%), though not statistically significant (p=0.107). Longer epilepsy duration predicted increased latencies for both VN (p=0.030) and AN (p< 0.001). Age was inversely correlated with latencies—strongly for VN (p=0.005), and marginally for AN (p=0.095)—suggesting developmental improvements in naming efficiency. Naming latency decreased (improved response time) with higher processing speed, but these trends did not reach significance.