Personalized prediction, treatment and genetics in epilepsy
Epilepsy, Genetics, Precision medicine
Research aim
We develop personalized methods for diagnosing, treating, and predicting outcome in epilepsy. Our aim is to better control seizures, treat comorbidities, and improve quality of life with a precision medicine approach in all people with epilepsy.
About us
The overarching theme of the UMCU Epilepsy Research Group is “precision medicine in epilepsy”. We aim to develop personalized and innovative therapies to target pathophysiological mechanism, modify diseaese course and treat comorbidities, and enable the surgical resection of the epileptogenic source. The group consists of clinical and preclinical investigators, allowing translational approaches to improve the diagnosis and care for people with epilepsy. We are an internationally endorsed center of expertise for rare and complex epilepsies and genetics, and the only Dutch member of ERN EpiCARE, partnering our colleague clinicians and researchers from SEIN (Epilepsy Foundation of the Netherlands).
Our group closely collaborates with the “Neurophysiology and surgical tailoring” group and unites (child) neurologists, neurosurgeons, (pre)clinical geneticists, and methodologists. We participate in international large-scale research projects, and we
– led multicenter studies on postoperative outcomes and drug withdrawal (Lancet Neurol 2012, 2020)
– led the largest GWAS studies to date to analyse common epilepsy risk factors (Nat Genet 2023)
– developed novel genetic treatment modalities
– led the first randomized ESES trial (Lancet Neurol 2024)
– developed several individualized prediction models of epilepsy diagnosis, surgical cognitive outcome, and post-withdrawal relapse risks (e.g. Pediatrics 2018, Neurology 2022, EClinicalMedicine 2022, Lancet Neurol 2017).