Abstract
Introduction and objectives. The surgery of epilepsy has become a real alternative for the treatment of patients with drug-resistant epilepsy. In this study we review the part played by clinical neuropsychology in programmes of surgery for epilepsy, particularly in operations designed to treat drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy. Development. Firstly we describe thefunction of the clinical neurologist in relation to these patients. Then we consider the main national and international forms of assessment. Finally we describe the main findings of neuropsychological investigation regarding the approach to temporal lobectomy. Thus we describe the main presurgical characteristics of candidates for surgery regarding cognition and personality. Similarly we describe what is known of the possibilities of finding the site of the epilepetogenic focus and prognosis of the results and neuropsychological consequences of the operation. Finally, we describe the cognitive results, particularly memory, after temporal lobectomy. Conclusions. Review of the literature shows how important it is for the clinical neuropsychologist to be involved in programmes of the surgery of epilepsy, studying the patients before and after surgery and assessing prognosis. Clinical neuropsychology is also important for predicting the post-surgical neuropsychological results.
| Translated title of the contribution | Clinical neuropsychology of the surgery of temporal lobe epilepsy |
|---|---|
| Original language | Spanish |
| Pages (from-to) | 1116-1135 |
| Number of pages | 20 |
| Journal | Revista de Neurologia |
| Volume | 35 |
| Issue number | 12 |
| Publication status | Published - 16 Dec 2002 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Clinical neuropsychology
- Memory
- Prediction of change
- Protocols for neuropsychological assessment
- Temporal lobe epilepsy
- Temporal lobectomy