Epilepsy is the world’s common chronic neurological condition, affecting about one in every 100 people. Those who have it go into seizures of varying intensity, ranging from barely noticeable to dramatic, with convulsions and loss of consciousness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
These seizures stem from excessive electrical discharges in the brain, a kind of \u201cneuronal storm\u201d that, in severe cases, can disrupt breathing and cause sudden death. A more common risk is injury \u2013 sometimes even bone fractures \u2013 from falls during seizures.<\/p>\n
While anti-seizure medications are the first line of treatment, they don\u2019t work for about one-third of people living with epilepsy. Surgery to remove the area of the brain responsible for seizures has proven effective in a limited number of cases. For others, seizures persist despite all available treatments.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s why researchers are now exploring other avenues, such as detecting or even predicting seizures to prevent the injuries they can cause. This is a key focus of the research of Dang Khoa Nguyen and \u00c9lie Bou Assi, both professors in the Department of Neuroscience at Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al and researchers at the CHUM Research Centre.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
‘Realizing it’s happening’<\/p>\n
\u201cDetecting a seizure means realizing it\u2019s happening, like opening your umbrella when it starts raining, whereas predicting means realizing that it\u2019s coming, like knowing it\u2019s going to rain and taking an umbrella when you go out,\u201d explained Nguyen, holder of a Canada Research Chair in Epilepsy and Functional Anatomy of the Human Brain.<\/p>\n
While prediction remains a complex scientific challenge, real-time detection is within reach thanks to devices equipped with physiological sensors that can be worn or placed next to the body.<\/p>\n
Now, a whole range of devices \u2013 from mattresses to wristbands, shirts and shoes \u2013 are being tested in the lab for their ability to accurately, continuously and non-invasively measure breathing, heart activity and movement.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Triggering the alarm<\/p>\n