Governance of the clinical pathway and management of the patient suffering from epilepsy and drug-resistant epilepsy

Abstract

Epilepsy is a diffuse chronic neurological disease affecting around 50 million people worldwide. The diagnostic criteria by the International League against Epilepsy must be fulfilled to diagnose the disease, which is characterized by brief and transient episodes of abnormal neuronal activity involving one or both hemispheres, depending on the epilepsy type. The diagnosis of epilepsy should be properly and timely made because patients suffering from the disease are affected not only by seizure recurrence but also by epilepsy-related psychiatric and/or cognitive comorbidities that may have a huge impact with severe professional and social implications. It is of vital importance to define a specific governance model that has to be virtuously applied into the different phases of the clinical pathway of the patients with epilepsy in order to guarantee them the best model of care possible.

Clinical pharmacy and telemedicine: an opportunity to improve epilepsy management

“…The introduction of antiseizure medications over the past three decades has improved our ability to personalize treatment choices based on individual needs. However, these medications have had limited impact on seizure outcomes for individuals with refractory epilepsy ( 11 , 12 ).…”

The potential impact of PNNR on the management of patients with epilepsy

“…On the Italian territory, reference centres with highly qualified personnel, defined on the basis of regional needs and the population, should be accessible to every person suffering from epilepsy. To avoid discrepancies in care and to overcome the ‘health system regionalization’, the central government should guarantee homogeneity in the qualification of centres dedicated to epilepsy, their medical personnel and the specific equipment ( 6 ).…”