• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.463-468
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• 1996

본 연구는 간질 병소의 국소화에 있어 발작기 및 발작간 뇌스캔의 정확도를 알아보고 발작기 뇌 스캔에서 나타나는 간질 확산이 정확한 간질 병소를 국소화 하는데 어떠한 영향을 미치는가에 대하여 알아보고자 하였다. 15명의 복잡 부분 발작 환자를 대상으로 하였으며, 간질 병소의 최종적인 국소화는 두피 및 발작 뇌파, 피질 뇌파, 자기 공명 영상, 임상양상 및 병리 소견을 종합한 근거로 하였다. 발작기 뇌스캔은 뇌파상 발작 중 또는 환자가 aura를 호소할 때 Tc-99m HMPAO 20mCi(740 MBq)를 정맥주입후 시행하였으며 발작간 뇌스캔은 발작기 뇌스캔 후 3일 이내 임상적으로 발작 증상이 없는 기간에 시행하였다. 간질 병소는 우측 측두엽이 8예, 좌측 측두엽이 6예, 측두엽 이외의 기원이 1예 였다. 발작기 뇌스캔상, 모두 11예(73.3 %)에서 단발성 또는 다발성 섭취 증가가 간질 병소 및 간질확산 부위에서 관찰되었으며, 간질 병소에만 국한된 섭취 증가는 4예(26.7%)에 불과 하였다. 발작간 뇌스캔에는 모두 11예(73.3 %)에서 간질 병소에만 섭취가 감소되었다. 자기 공명 영상에서는 8예(53.3 %)에서 hippocampal sclerosis를 포함한 간질 병소가 확인되었다. 본 연구로 복잡 부분 발작 환자에서, 간질 확산이 발작기 뇌 스캔 중 자주 관찰됨을 알 수 있었으며, 이러한 간질 확산에 따른 다발성 방사능 섭취가 발작기 뇌스캔상, 간질 병소의 국소화에있어 한계가 있음을 결론 내릴 수 있었다.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Intelligent Systems Conference
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• 2002.05a
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• pp.73-76
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• 2002

간질은 대뇌 신경세포의 순간적인 제어되지 않는 과도한 전기방출로 인하여, 발작적으로 몸의 경련이나, 기타 신경증상 등이 몸으로 표출되는 현상으로 이것이 반복되어 나타나는 현상이다. 간질 진단에 필수적으로 사용되는 뇌파에 혼합된 미지의 성분들로부터 각각의 독립적인 성분으로 분리하는 독립성분분석(ICA)을 적용하여 간질 발작파를 분리하고, 발생위치를 추정하였다. 본 연구에서는 부분발작 환자를 대상으로 간질 발작파가 나타나는 뇌파 신호(18개 채널)에 독립성분분석을 적용하여 18개의 독립성분으로 분리하였다. 또한 발작파(예파(sharp), 극파(spike), 예파와 서파를 동반한 극서파(sharp and slow complexes))가 나오는 간질 발작파의 유형을 분리하였다. 2차원 topological map을 이용하여 발작파의 발생위치를 나타내어 간질 진단에 독립성분분석이 적용될 수 있음을 나타내었다.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.50 no.7
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• pp.672-677
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• 2007

Purpose : To assess the prevalence and characteristics of headache comorbidity with epilepsy in children and adolescents in a specialty epilepsy clinic. Methods : Two hundred twenty nine consecutive patients attending the Chosun University Hospital Pediatric Epilepsy Clinic (mean age $10.0{\pm}4.1\;years$, range 4-17, M:F ratio 1.1:1.0) were interviewed with a standardized headache questionnaire. Headache was classified according to the International Classification of Headache Disorders, 2nd Edition and epilepsy was classified according to the International League Against Epilepsy. Disability was assessed using pediatric migraine disability assessment (PedMIDAS). Results : Of the 229 epilepsy patients, 86 (37.6%) had co-morbid headache. Of the headache patients, 64 (74.4%) had migraine (65.6%- migraine without aura, 20.3% - migraine with aura, 14.1% - probable migraine). The mean headache frequency was $7.2{\pm}8.4$ per month, mean duration was $2.2{\pm}4.0$ hours, mean severity was $5.2{\pm}2.2$ out of 10, and mean PedMIDAS score was $13.0{\pm}35.4$. The proportion of females was not higher in epilepsy with headache patients (48.8%) compared to epilepsy patients alone (48.0%). In the patients with migraine, 48.4% had complex partial seizures, 17.2% had simple partial seizures, and 34.4% had generalized seizures (P=0.368). A postictal association of migraine was reported in 18.8% with 17.2% reporting a preictal headache, and 7.8% reporting an ictal headache. Conclusion : The prevalence of headache in pediatric epilepsy is higher than that in general pediatric population, suggesting a co-morbidity of headache in epilepsy patients with migraine being the most frequent headache disorder. Altered cerebral excitability resulting in an increased occurrence of spreading depression may explain the headache comorbidity with epilepsy. Further studies are needed to assess the etiology of this co-morbidity as well as assess the frequency, duration, severity and disability response to antiepileptic drugs.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.9-14
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• 1995

뇌졸증환자의 뇌 SPECT 소견상 나타나는 소뇌교차해리현상(crossed cerebellar diaschisis)은 잘 알려진 현상이다. 한편 간질 환자의 발작시 뇌 SPECT에서 반대편 소뇌에 혈류증가를 보이는 역교차해리현상(reverse type of crossed cerebellar diashisis)은 드물게 보고되었었다. 따라서 본 저자들은 발작시 뇌 SPECT에서 역교차해리현상의 빈도 및 간질병소를 찾는데 있어서의 유용성에 대해 알아보고자 하였다. 복합부분발작환자 중 임상적, 뇌파검사상 및 SPECT 소견등에서 간질병소가 일치하는 12명의 환자를 대상으로 하였다. 환자 모두에서 시행한 발작시 스캔은 발작중 혹은 환자가 aura를 호소할때 $^{99m}Tc$-HMPAO 15-20mCi를 정맥주입 후 시행하였으며 발작간 스캔은 11명의 환자에서 발작시 스캔 후 적어도 3일 간격을 두고 시행하였다. 간질병소는 우측측두엽이 6예, 좌측측두엽이 4예, 우측후두엽이 1예, 좌측전두엽이 1예 등이었다. 발작시 스캔상 간질병소 및 반대편 소뇌에 혈류가 증가하는 역해리현상은 모두 8명(75%)의 환자에서 나타났으며 특히 2명의 환자에서는 간질병소보다 반대편 소뇌의 동위원소 섭취가 더욱 뚜렸했다. 역해리현상을 보였던 환자의 발작간 스캔소견에서는 발작시 증가되었었던 소뇌의 동위원소 섭취가 7예에서 정상화되었고 나머지 1예에서는 감소되었다. 따라서 소뇌의 역교차해리현상은 발작시 뇌 SPECT의 자주 볼 수 있는 현상으로 간질병소의 편측화에 도움을 줄 수 있을 것으로 생각된다.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.48 no.11
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• pp.1225-1231
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• 2005

Purpose : This study compares the first epileptic seizures between preterm and term-born children with periventricular leukomalacia and epilepsy. Methods : From 108 cases having lesions of high signal intensity around the ventricles in T2 weighted imaging of a brain magnetic resonance study, we selected 37 cases that showed epileptic seizures two times or more and divided them into the group of preterm-born(27 cases) and term-born children(10 cases). A retrospective study was made by comparing the two groups with regard to age, type of the first epileptic seizures, EEG findings and responsiveness to anticonvulsants. Results : The age of the first epileptic seizure was $22.2{\pm}18.3$ months in the preterm-born group and $26.9{\pm}21.1$ months in the term-born group(P=0.505). As for the first epileptic seizure, 11 out of the 27 cases in the preterm-born group had infantile spasms. Out of the 10 cases in the term-born group, 7 had complex partial seizures. In the preterm group, hypsarrhythmias were found in 11 cases, focal epileptiform discharges in 6 cases. In term-born group, focal epileptiform discharges were found in 5 cases but no epileptiform discharge was found in 3 cases. Intractable epilepsies were diagnosed in 6 cases and all of them belonged to the preterm-born group. Conclusion : More severe epilepsies such as infantile spasm and intractable epilepsies seem to be more common in preterm-born epileptic children with PVL as well as more severely abnormal EEG finding compared to term-born epileptic children.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.107-118
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• 2007

Background : It is well known that non-rapid eye movement(NREM) sleep activates the occurrence of interictal epileptiform discharges(IED) in many epileptic syndromes. We performed this study to assess the effect of NREM sleep on IED in epileptic patients with organic brain lesions. Materials and Methods : We analyzed awake and sleep electroencephalopathy(EEG) recorded simultaneously after partial sleep deprivation in 50 patients. We calculated the awake and sleep spike index (ASI and SSI, spikes/epoch), and the percentage increase of ASI and SSI during sleep. Results : In the 50 patients, the IEDs were recorded exclusively during the awake state in 1 (2%) patient, and during the sleep state in 13(26%) patients. The SSI was higher in 44 (88%) patients, and the ASI was higher in 5 (10%) patients. The mean ASI and the SSI in patients with organic brain lesions were $0.058{\pm}0.121$ and $0.148{\pm}0.187$, and it was $0.081{\pm}0.150$ and $0.174{\pm}0.226$ in patients without organic brain lesions. There were significant increases in the spike index (P<0.05) during NREM sleep in both groups (n=36), but no significant difference in the percent increase of spike index (P>0.05). Conclusion : The IEDs were activated significantly during NREM sleep both in patients with and without organic brain lesions, but there were no differences in the degree of activation in both groups. The activating effect of NREM sleep was not correlated with clinical factors such as, frequent nocturnal seizures, frequent generalized tonic clonic seizures, type of epilepsy and taking anticonvulsants. We conclude that the routine EEG used to evaluate epileptiform discharges in epileptic patients should include sleep recordings after partial sleep deprivation.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.45 no.12
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• pp.1559-1570
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• 2002

Purpose : There has been no exact answer to the question of when to discontinue antiepileptic drugs(AEDs) in children with well-controlled epilepsy for a long period. This study is about the risk factors of relapse after withdrawal of AEDs in seizure(Sz)-free patients to show a guideline for discontinuation of AEDs. Methods : One hundred and sixty-nine children were diagnosed as epileptic at the Pediatric Dept. of Kyung-Hee Univ. between 1993 to 1998, in whom AEDs had been withdrawn after at least two years of Sz-free period. Univariate analysis using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and multivariate analysis using Cox-proportional hazard model were performed for sixteen risk factors. Results : Forty-nine of the 169 patients(28.9%) had recurrence of Szs. The mean follow-up after withdrawal of AEDs was 4.1 years, mean treatment period was 4.1 years, and the mean Sz-free period was 3.3 years. Factors associated with an increased risk of relapse were young age at onset, symptomatic Sz, Sz type in West and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, neurologic deficit, longer Sz-controlling period, shorter total treatment period, number of AEDs used(more than one drug), age at withdrawal of AEDs, and Sz-free period less than two years in univariate analysis using Kaplan-Meier mothod. From multivariate analysis, the factors indicating a significantly higher relapse risk were pre-treatment period after first Sz attack, Sz-controlling period, Sz-free period, number of AEDs used, neurologic abnormalities. Conclusion : For epileptic children who were Sz-free for more than two years, and were more than six-years-old, the discontinuation of AEDs should be considered positively, according to age of onset, Sz type, age at withdrawal of AEDs, total treatment period, Sz-controlling period, number of AEDs used, etiology, neurologic deficit, and the wishes of the patients and the their parents.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.52 no.7
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• pp.804-810
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• 2009

Purpose : We investigated whether ictal single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) with prolonged injection of technetium-99m (99mTc) ethyl cysteinate dimer during repeated spasms can localize the epileptogenic foci in children with infantile spasms. Methods : Fourteen children with infantile spasms (11 boys, 3 girls; mean age, $2.2{\pm}1.3$ years) were examined. When a cluster of spasms was detected during video electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring, $^{99m}Tc$ ethyl cysteinate dimer was slowly and continuously injected for 2 minutes to determine the presence of ictal SPECT. For 7 children, the ictal and interictal SPECT images were visually analyzed, while for the remaining 7 children, the SPECT images were analyzed using the subtraction ictal SPECT coregistered to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (SISCOM) technique. Subsequently, we analyzed the association between the ictal SPECT findings and those of other diagnostic modalities such as EEG, MRI, and positron emission tomography (PET). Results : Increase in cerebral blood flow on ictal SPECT involved the epileptogenic foci in 10 cases6 cases analyzed by visual assessment and 4 analyzed by the SISCOM technique. The ictal SPECT and video-EEG findings showed moderate agreement (Kappa=0.57; 95% confidence interval, 0.18-0.96). Conclusion : Ictal SPECT with prolonged injection of a tracer could provide supplementary information to localize the epileptogenic foci in infantile spasms.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.571-578
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• 2010

Purpose : To evaluate the efficacy and safety of levetiracetam adjunctive therapy for reducing the rate of seizure frequency in children with intractable pediatric epilepsy. Methods : We reviewed the medical records of 86 patients with intractable pediatric epilepsy who visited our hospital between March 1989 and February 2009. Levetiracetam was included in the previous anticonvulsant regimen for at least 6 months and the reduction in the rate of seizure frequency was determined in follow-up examinations. We analyzed demographic data, seizure types, antiepileptic drug history, levetiracetam dose, adverse effects of levetiracetam therapy, treatment outcome, electroencephalogram findings, etc. Results : More than 50% reduction in the seizure frequency was observed in 62 of the 86 (72.1%) patients; 44 patients (51.1%) became seizure free, while the seizure frequency increased in 5.8% patients. The associations between seizure reduction rate and age, associated diseases, seizure types, and seizure frequency before treatment were not significant. However, the duration of disease, dose of levetiracetam, duration and frequency of anticonvulsant administration before levetiracetam therapy were significantly correlated. Electroencephalogram findings and the cause of epilepsy showed partial correlation. Forty (46%) patients showed adverse symptoms; the symptoms in the order of their frequency were somnolence, hyperactivity, irritability, aggressiveness, tiredness, etc. Conclusion : The findings of our study provide the evidence that levetiracetam adjunctive therapy is efficacious and well tolerated in various refractory childhood epilepsy cases.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Information and Communication Engineering
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• v.10 no.8
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• pp.1471-1477
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• 2006

Electrocorticogram (ECoG) was recorded in one young adult suffering from medically refractory partial seizures a few weeks before resection. ECoG of intractable focal epilepsy was analyzed usins AR model, wavelet analysis and cross-correlation analysis. The cross-correlation of the epileptic discharges was calculated between the electrodes in every unit of time, to get the phase shift. A contour map of the phase shift and the sequential two-dimensional phase shift maps were utilized to localize the epileptic foci and to study their propagation process. More than two epileptogenic foci were localized and two kinds of propagating process were shown. These investigations suggest that epileptic phenomena can be caused by at least two kinds of mechanisms in one patient.