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Temporal lobe epilepsy is a progressive disorder

Nature Reviews Neurology volume 6, page 179 (2010)Cite this article

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We read with interest the commentary by Kuzniecky et al. (Epilepsy: Is localization-related epilepsy a progressive disorder? Maybe... Nat. Rev. Neurol. 5, 356–357 (2009))1 on our recently published work on MRI-based analysis of cortical thickness in patients with pharmacoresistant temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE).2 Using longitudinal and cross-sectional designs, we showed that TLE is associated with progressive neocortical atrophy that is distinct from normal aging.

Kuzniecky et al. expressed concerns about the differences between normal aging-related cerebral atrophy observed in our healthy controls and those reported in a previous study, which showed widespread thinning across the entire cortex.3 In response, we would like to highlight a number of factors that could have contributed to the seemingly more restricted pattern of atrophy observed in our control group, and dispel the impression that effects of aging on cortical thickness were found only in patients and not in healthy controls.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology and McConnell Brain Imaging Center, Neuroimaging of Epilepsy Laboratory, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, 3801 University Street, Quebec, H3A 2B4, Montreal, Canada

    Neda Bernasconi & Boris C. Bernhardt

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  1. Neda Bernasconi
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  2. Boris C. Bernhardt
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Correspondence to Neda Bernasconi.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Bernasconi, N., Bernhardt, B. Temporal lobe epilepsy is a progressive disorder. Nat Rev Neurol 6, 179 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneurol.2009.82-c1

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