According to a study, “Seizure control and quality of life in children with epilepsy after vagus nerve stimulator placement, corpus callostomy, or ketogenic diet initiation” [1]:
Vagus nerve stimulator placement, corpus callostomy, and ketogenic diet was successful in reducing both generalized and focal seizure types, [with] ketogenic diet showing a trend towards slightly better success.
Parents of 210 patients, who had 292 (VNS, n=150; CC, n=44; KD, n=98) treatment modalities, agreed to participate in a phone interview. 60% were male with ages ranging from 8 months to 20 years. Seizure control, cognitive and behavioral factors, quality of life and treatment satisfaction was rated via a 9-item telephone questionnaire.
Improvements observed in cognitive and behavioral domains, better seizure control and less falls positively affected quality of life. Parent overall satisfaction was greater than 75%, which far outweighed seizure reduction or behavioral improvements.
These findings support palliative management for those with pharmacoresistant epilepsy who are not candidates for surgical resection.