Surgery for epileptogenic cerebral dysplasia in children.

New developments in diagnostic methods, technical improvements in the surgical field, and a better understanding of the effects of epilepsy on the developing brain are contributing to the general observation that more children with epilepsy are being treated surgically. Malformations of cortical development are the most common cause of seizures in pediatric surgical candidates, and the best predictor of seizure freedom after surgery appears to be the complete removal of the epileptogenic lesion. To achieve this goal in challenging cases, such as magnetic resonance imaging-negative or multifocal lesions, a staged approach with pre- and/or post-resective invasive electroencephalography monitoring has increasingly been used at a number of centers. As the experience with this approach has grown, and the risks and benefits are better understood, a larger number of patients with epilepsy have been identified as potential surgical candidates. In this review, a number of the recent developments in pediatric epilepsy surgery are discussed.