Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
2.7
2.0
Journals
Children
Special Issues
Childhood Epilepsy: Clinical Advances and Perspectives
share announcement

Childhood Epilepsy: Clinical Advances and Perspectives

A special issue of Children (ISSN 2227-9067). This special issue belongs to the section "Pediatric Neurology & Neurodevelopmental Disorders".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 January 2025) | Viewed by 954

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Gayatra Mainali

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
Interests: epilepsy; stroke; Tourette syndrome; complementary; alternative medicine
Dr. Alain Lekoubou

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA
Interests: epilepsy; stroke; epidemiology
Dr. Ahmad Marashly

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Neurology, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
Interests: epilepsy surgery; epilepsy imaging

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Epilepsy causes recurrent unprovoked seizures; however, not all seizures are due to epilepsy. Epilepsy affects around 70 million people (about twice the population of California) worldwide and is among the most common neurologic disorders seen in children. Two-thirds of children with epilepsy achieve seizure freedom with antiseizure medications. Unfortunately, one-third of patients develop drug-resistant epilepsy, defined as the failure of two or more adequate trials of antiseizure medication to control seizures. These children are at substantial risk for cognitive, behavioral, and psychiatric problems as well as osteoporosis, seizure-induced injury, and sudden unexpected death from epilepsy. 

Over the last several years, several advancements in epilepsy treatment have taken place including new-generation anti-seizure medications, new techniques in epilepsy surgery and neuromodulation devices, including Responsive Neurostimulation (RNS) and Deep Brain stimulation (DBS). Widely available genetic testing is helping to develop targeted treatment or gene therapy for certain conditions. On the other hand, new routes for rescue medications and seizure monitoring devices are helping seizure management at home. Machine learning, high-resolution MRI and other functional brain mapping technics are improving epilepsy surgery outcomes.

Dr. Gayatra Mainali
Dr. Alain Lekoubou
Dr. Ahmad Marashly
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Children is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • epilepsy
  • refractory epilepsy
  • epilepsy surgery
  • neuromodulation
  • epilepsy genetics

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (1 paper)

Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Review

21 pages, 498 KiB  
Review
Precision Therapeutics in Lennox–Gastaut Syndrome: Targeting Molecular Pathophysiology in a Developmental and Epileptic Encephalopathy
by Debopam Samanta
Children 2025, 12(4), 481; https://doi.org/10.3390/children12040481 - 8 Apr 2025
Viewed by 604
Abstract
Lennox–Gastaut syndrome (LGS) is a severe childhood-onset developmental and epileptic encephalopathy characterized by multiple drug-resistant seizure types, cognitive impairment, and distinctive electroencephalographic patterns. Current treatments primarily focus on symptom management through antiseizure medications (ASMs), dietary therapy, epilepsy surgery, and neuromodulation, but often fail [...] Read more.
Lennox–Gastaut syndrome (LGS) is a severe childhood-onset developmental and epileptic encephalopathy characterized by multiple drug-resistant seizure types, cognitive impairment, and distinctive electroencephalographic patterns. Current treatments primarily focus on symptom management through antiseizure medications (ASMs), dietary therapy, epilepsy surgery, and neuromodulation, but often fail to address the underlying pathophysiology or improve cognitive outcomes. As genetic causes are identified in 30–40% of LGS cases, precision therapeutics targeting specific molecular mechanisms are emerging as promising disease-modifying approaches. This narrative review explores precision therapeutic strategies for LGS based on molecular pathophysiology, including channelopathies (SCN2A, SCN8A, KCNQ2, KCNA2, KCNT1, CACNA1A), receptor and ligand dysfunction (GABA/glutamate systems), cell signaling abnormalities (mTOR pathway), synaptopathies (STXBP1, IQSEC2, DNM1), epigenetic dysregulation (CHD2), and CDKL5 deficiency disorder. Treatment modalities discussed include traditional ASMs, dietary therapy, targeted pharmacotherapy, antisense oligonucleotides, gene therapy, and the repurposing of existing medications with mechanism-specific effects. Early intervention with precision therapeutics may not only improve seizure control but could also potentially prevent progression to LGS in susceptible populations. Future directions include developing computable phenotypes for accurate diagnosis, refining molecular subgrouping, enhancing drug development, advancing gene-based therapies, personalizing neuromodulation, implementing adaptive clinical trial designs, and ensuring equitable access to precision therapeutic approaches. While significant challenges remain, integrating biological insights with innovative clinical strategies offers new hope for transforming LGS treatment from symptomatic management to targeted disease modification. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Childhood Epilepsy: Clinical Advances and Perspectives)
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-1
Back to TopTop