Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40167366›Full record

ArticleEpilepsia2025

Deep brain stimulation of the centromedian nucleus for drug-resistant epilepsy in children: Quality-of-life and functional outcomes from the CHILD-DBS registry.

Karim Mithani, Farbod Niazi, Hrishikesh Suresh, Yousof Alrumayyan, Eriberto R Rayco, Ayako Ochi, Hiroshi Otsubo, Elizabeth Kerr, Sara Breitbart, Andrea LeBlanc-Millar and 12 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Epilepsia, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–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

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Short-Term Modulation of Epileptic Network with Low-Frequency Thalamic Stimulation.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2025
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
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

22 authors.

Karim MithaniInstitute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8094-3070
Farbod NiaziNeuroscience and Mental Health, SickKids Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9896-1616
Hrishikesh SureshInstitute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Yousof AlrumayyanDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Eriberto R RaycoDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Ayako OchiDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Hiroshi OtsuboDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Elizabeth KerrDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Sara BreitbartDivision of Neurosurgery, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Andrea LeBlanc-MillarDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Nisha GadgilDivision of Neurosurgery, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA.
Jeffrey S RaskinDivision of Neurosurgery, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Alexander G WeilDivision of Neurosurgery, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Aristides HadjinicolaouDivision of Neurology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Christian Iorio-MorinDivision of Neurosurgery, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada.
Shelly WeissDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Puneet JainDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6009-0859
Lauren ShamDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Elizabeth DonnerDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1126-0548
Alfonso FasanoDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5346-0180
Carolina GorodetskyDivision of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
George M IbrahimInstitute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9068-8184

Funding

Abe Bresver Chair in Functional NeurosurgeryGarry Hurvitz Centre for Brain & Mental Health Catalyst Grant
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveDeep brain stimulation of the centromedian nucleus of the thalamus (CM-DBS) is an investigational, off-label treatment for drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) in children. Although emerging evidence supports its safety and efficacy for select indications, the effect of CM-DBS on quality of life and functional outcomes such as school attendance has not been studied. Here, we analyzed data from the prospective CHILD-DBS (Child & Youth Comprehensive Longitudinal Database for Deep Brain Stimulation) to examine the impact of CM-DBS on patient- and caregiver-reported outcomes.

methodsTwenty-two children and youth underwent bilateral CM-DBS. Caregiver-child dyads completed surveys related to seizure frequency, seizure severity, quality of life, and school attendance at baseline, 6 months, and 1 year postsurgery. Simulated volumes of tissue activation were analyzed to identify optimal stimulation targets associated with treatment outcome.

resultsOf 22 children, 10 experienced ≥50% reduction in seizure frequency (mean reduction = 66.7 ± 17.3%), one exhibited a modest benefit (37.5% reduction), and the remaining 11 experienced no change. The majority (73% of patients) exhibited a clinically important reduction in seizure severity, including six children who did not demonstrate any change in seizure frequency. Only those who experienced a reduction in seizure frequency demonstrated significant improvements in general health and overall quality of life. Furthermore, we observed an increase in school attendance across participants 1 year after CM-DBS. SIGNIFICANCE: CM-DBS can lead to reduction in seizure burden concurrent with improvements in quality of life and relevant functional outcomes in children with DRE. These findings further our understanding of the impact of CM-DBS on meaningful outcomes for children and caregivers.

Indexed as

Deep Brain StimulationDrug Resistant EpilepsyIntralaminar Thalamic NucleiQuality of LifeAdolescentChildChild, PreschoolFemaleHumansLongitudinal StudiesMaleProspective StudiesRegistriesTreatment Outcomecentromedian nucleusdeep brain stimulationdrug‐resistant epilepsypediatricsquality of life

Identifiers

PMID40167366
PMCPMC12291001

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.