Epilepsy Center

The Cheyenne Regional Epilepsy Center provides the technology and expertise required to make a definitive epilepsy diagnosis, and to follow up with appropriate treatment options.

The Cheyenne Regional Epilepsy Center has been designated by the National Association of Epilepsy Centers as a Level 3 center. This designation means the center can provide neuro-diagnostic evaluations and basic medical, neuropsychological and psychosocial services. The center does not perform complex surgeries that may be needed to treat some forms of epilepsy.

The Impact of Epilepsy

Epilepsy affects about 2 million people in the United States. It’s also estimated that 10 percent of people in the United States will experience a seizure in their lifetime. Each year, epilepsy accounts for about $15.5 billion in medical expenses and indirect costs, including lost or reduced earnings and productivity. Additionally, approximately one-third of people with epilepsy or who have had seizures, have not seen a neurologist in the past year.

The Need for an Epilepsy Center

Epilepsy is both under-diagnosed and misdiagnosed for a variety of reasons:

• Patients with non-epileptic spells may have stereotypical events, and visual inspection of the spell will not differentiate it from a non-epileptic event.
• A routine electroencephalography (EEG) has a diagnostic sensitivity between 25 and 55 percent; and about 10 percent of patients with epilepsy never show interictal epileptiform discharges.
• More than half the patients with non-epileptic events also have epileptic events or epileptiform discharges.
• Both epileptic and non-epileptic seizures can be present in the same person.

Making an Epilepsy Diagnosis

When routine and ambulatory EEGs are non-diagnostic, the next step is for the patient to undergo monitoring with a video EEG during an elective inpatient admission. Monitoring takes place under the continuous supervision of trained staff and can take several hours or days. Testing and monitoring takes place under the supervision of a board-certified neurologist with fellowship training in neurophysiologic monitoring.

In terms of specific outcomes, the Cheyenne Regional Epilepsy Center can:

• Differentiate between epileptic and non-epileptic events
• Determine seizure and epilepsy classification
• Quantify seizure frequency
• Assess response to therapy
• Provide a pre-surgical evaluation of partial epilepsy

Testing at the epilepsy center can also help differentiate epileptic seizures from non-epileptic seizures, including psychogenic seizures (accounting for about 20-50 percent of admissions), syncope, TIA, sleep disorders, movement disorders, vestibular disorders and migraines.

Referring a Patient

The Cheyenne Regional Epilepsy Center takes elective admissions on an ongoing basis. Testing takes place on the fourth floor of Cheyenne Regional Medical Center’s west campus.

The goal of the center is to provide patients with the highest quality of care. We are also committed to working closely with all referring providers to effectively coordinate each patient’s care. Wyoming Neurology’s epilepsy clinic is also available for patients who need comprehensive management of their seizures.

If you have any questions regarding the Cheyenne Regional Epilepsy Center or epilepsy treatment, please call Wyoming Neurology at (307) 432-0335.