Evidence map›Paper›PMID 15716532›Full record

Trial reportJournal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry2005

Vagus nerve stimulation: predictors of seizure freedom.

J Janszky, M Hoppe, F Behne, I Tuxhorn, H W Pannek, A Ebner

Abstract readClinical Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry, 2005. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
28citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

28 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Factors predicting the response to vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) in pediatric patients with drug- resistant epilepsy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Child's nervous system : ChNS : official journal of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery · 2025
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  17. [Application of scalp electroencephalogram in treatment of refractory epilepsy with vagus nerve stimulation].Sheng wu yi xue gong cheng xue za zhi = Journal of biomedical engineering = Shengwu yixue gongchengxue zazhi · 2020
    Review
  18. Health Technology Assessment Report on Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Drug-Resistant Epilepsy.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020
    Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

J JanszkyEpilepsie-Zentrum Bethel, Mara Krankenhaus, Maraweg 21, Bielefeld 33617, Germany.
M Hoppe
F Behne
I Tuxhorn
H W Pannek
A Ebner

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo identify predictive factors for the seizure-free outcome of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS).

methodsAll 47 patients who had undergone VNS implantation at one centre and had at least one year of follow up were studied. They underwent complete presurgical evaluation including detailed clinical history, magnetic resonance imaging, and long term video-EEG with ictal and interictal recordings. After implantation, adjustment of stimulation parameters and concomitant antiepileptic drugs were at the discretion of the treating physician.

resultsMean (SD) age of the patients was 22.7 (11.6) years (range 7 to 53). Six patients (13%) became seizure-free after the VNS implantation. Only two variables showed a significant association with the seizure-free outcome: absence of bilateral interictal epileptiform discharges (IED) and presence of malformation of cortical development (MCD). Epilepsy duration showed a non-significant trend towards a negative association with outcome. By logistic regression analysis, only absence of bilateral IED correlated independently with successful VNS treatment (p<0.01, odds ratio = 29.2 (95% confidence interval, 2.4 to 353)). Bilateral IED (independent or bilateral synchronous) was found in one of six seizure-free patients and in 33 of 41 non-seizure-free patients. When bilateral IED were absent, the sensitivity for seizure-free outcome was 0.83 (0.44 to 0.97), and the specificity was 0.80 (0.66 to 0.90).

conclusionsBilateral IED was independently associated with the outcome of VNS. These results are preliminary because they were based on a small patient population. They may facilitate prospective VNS studies enrolling larger numbers of patients to confirm the results.

Indexed as

Electric Stimulation TherapyAdolescentAdultChildElectroencephalographyEpilepsyFemaleFunctional LateralityHumansMaleMiddle AgedPrognosisProstheses and ImplantsSeizuresTreatment OutcomeVagus Nerve

Identifiers

PMID15716532
PMCPMC1739542

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.