Epilepsy Program

Overview

Pickup Family Neurosciences Institute's Epilepsy Program provides an individualized, comprehensive approach to the diagnosis, treatment, management, and research of epilepsy and seizure disorders. As a NAEC Level III Epilepsy Center, the multi-disciplinary team is dedicated to providing the safest, most effective and least invasive treatments to help patients achieve the highest functionality. The Epilepsy Program also includes an Epilepsy Monitoring Unit. Our three-bed unit offers a comfortable environment with state-of-the-art video monitoring. A control room is just steps away for quick access to patients, and is staffed 24 hours a day with EEG monitoring technicians.

Patients in our Epilepsy Monitoring Unit are surveyed using the Quality of Life in Epilepsy (QOLIE -10-P) assessment tool. The average patient in FY17 experienced a 548.02% improvement in Quality of Life. Patients with surgical resection for Epilepsy have had at least 330 days of seizure freedom.

Team

The program is led by Dr. David Millett, a nationally recognized sub-specialized Epileptologist, and includes neurosurgeons Charles Liu, M.D., Ph.D and Jonathan Russin, M.D. Sheena Dhiman, BSN, MBA., nurse navigator for the Epilepsy Program, works closely with physicians, nurses, and EEG staff to help facilitate patient care, including appropriate referrals and resources, education of patients and staff, and coordinating programs to provide a large array of services to promote psychological and physiological wellness. The most recent addition to the teams is a dedicated nurse practitioner Suzanne Pach, R.N., who assists in the out-patient and in-patient evaluation and management of our patients.

Support & Education

As part of a multidisciplinary, collaborative approach to epilepsy, neurosurgeons, epileptologists, neuroradiologists, epilepsy care coordinators, EEG technologists and other health care professionals meet on a regular basis to review patient-specific cases being considered for surgical interventions. Patients benefit from this combined expertise and experience of the collective physicians and professionals.

The Epilepsy Center at Hoag offers an interactive support group for all adolescent and adult epilepsy patients. This support group functions under the direction of a licensed clinical social worker, and includes group and family discussions to help you better understand and cope with epilepsy. This support group meets on the first Wednesday of every month from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the Hoag Neurosciences Institute, 3rd floor conference room.

Clinical Research

UCB Pharma Protocol No1199: An open-label, multicenter, follow-up trial to evaluate the long-term safety and efficacy of Brivaracetam used as adjunctive treatment at a flexible dose up to 150 mg/day in subjects aged 16 years or older suffering from epilepsy. October 2013

Publications, Lectures, Book Chapters

BIBLIOGRAPHY (*indicates senior/corresponding author):

PEER REVIEWED

1. The Weekend Effect on Morbidity and Mortality Among Pediatric Epilepsy Admissions. Wen T, Kramer DR, Sirot S, Ho L, Moalem AS, Cen SY, Millett D, Heck C, Robison RA, Mack WJ, Liu CY. Pediatr Neurol. 2017 Sep;74:24-31

2. Characterization of electrocorticogram high-gamma signal in response to varying upper extremity movement velocity. Wang PT, McCrimmon CM, King CE, Shaw SJ, Millett DE, Gong H, Chui LA, Liu CY, Nenadic Z, Do AH. Brain Struct Funct. 2017 May 18

3. Potentially preventable complications in epilepsy admissions: The "weekend effect". Ho L, Kramer DR, Wen T, Moalem AS, Millett D, Heck CN, Mack WJ, Liu CY. Epilepsy Behav. 2017 May;70(Pt A):50-

4. Unstable periodic orbits in human epileptic hippocampal slices. Pen-Ning Yu, Min-Chi Hsiao, Dong Song, Liu CY, Heck CN, Millett D, Berger TW. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2014;2014:5800-3.

5. A testbed to explore the optimal electrical stimulation parameters for suppressing inter-ictal spikes in human hippocampal slices. Min-Chi Hsiao, Pen-Ning Yu, Dong Song, Liu CY, Heck CN, Millett D, Berger TW. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2014;2014:5792-5

6. An in vitro seizure model from human hippocampal slices using multi-electrode arrays. Hsiao MC, Yu PN, Song D, Liu CY, Heck CN, Millett D, Berger TW. J Neurosci Methods. 2015 Apr 15;244:154-63.

7. Sensitivity and specificity of upper extremity movements decoded from electrocorticogram. Do AH, Wang PT, King CE, Schombs A, Lin JJ, Sazgar M, Hsu FP, Shaw SJ, Millett DE, Liu CY, Szymanska AA, Chui LA, Nenadic Z. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2013;2013:5618-21

ABSTRACTS

1. Po T. Wang*, Christine E. King, Colin McCrimmon, Susan J. Shaw, David Millett, Charles Y. Liu, Luis A. Chui, Zoran Nenadic, An H. Do. “Electrocorticogram Encoding of Upper Extremity Movement Duration.” 36th Annual International IEEE EMBS Conference, Chicago, IL, August 26-30, 2014.
2. Pen-Ning Yu*, Min-Chi Hsiao, Dong Song, Charles Y. Liu, Christi N. Heck, David Millett, Theodore Berger. “Unstable Periodic Orbits in Human Epileptic Hippocampal Slices.” 36th Annual International IEEE EMBS Conference, Chicago, IL, August 26-30, 2014.
3. Min-Chi Hsiao, Pen-Ning Yu, Dong Song, Charles Y. Liu, Christi N. Heck, David Millett, Theodore Berger. “A Testbed to Explore the Optimal Electrical Stimulation Parameters for Suppressing Inter-Ictal Spikes in Human Hippocampal Slices.” 36th Annual International IEEE EMBS Conference, Chicago, IL, August 26-30, 2014.

CHAPTERS

1. Millett D, Coutin-Churchman P, Stern J. “Basic Principles of Electroencephalography.” In Toga A. Brain mapping: An Encyclopedic Reference. Elsevier Press, 2015: pp. 75-80.
2. Millett D and Stern J. “Fundamentals of EEG.” In Stern J and Sirven J (Eds), Atlas of Video-EEG Monitoring, McGraw-Hill, 2011.

To learn more, visit the Epilepsy Program section or call 949-764-6066.