Trends in pediatric epilepsy surgery: A lower‐middle‐income country perspective

Abstract

Objective To study the trends for pediatric epilepsy surgery between 2000 and 2014 in a tertiary epilepsy surgery center in India in order to gain a lower‐ and middle‐income country (LMIC) perspective. Methods Children aged <18 years and undergoing epilepsy surgery were divided into three groups based on the year that they underwent surgery—group 1: year 2000–2004; group 2: year 2005–2009; and group 3: year 2010–2014. Data including the rate of surgery, type of surgery, and duration of epilepsy before referral were analyzed from the medical records and compared. Results Between 2000 and 2014, 463 pediatric epilepsy surgeries were performed. The proportion of pediatric epilepsy surgeries showed an increasing trend—218 (total 510 surgeries, 42.74%) in group 3, compared with 115 (total 375 surgeries, 30.66%) in group 1 and 130 (total 466 surgeries, 27.9%) in group 2. A significant decrease in the age at evaluation and duration of epilepsy before referral was noted between 2000 and 2014, particularly in patients belonging to the lowest income group. There was a two‐fold increase in the number of extratemporal surgeries over time. The proportion of children undergoing surgery for benign tumors, cortical malformations, and gliosis/atrophy showed an upward trend while that for mesial temporal sclerosis did not show an increase. Significance Promising trends in pediatric epilepsy surgery were noted with increasing number of surgeries and decreasing age at presurgical evaluation. Seen from an LMIC perspective, this reflects an evolution in the practice of pediatric epilepsy surgery, mirroring trends in high‐income countries.