Priority 7 from the Epilepsy (Canada) PSP

UNCERTAINTY: How effective is surgical treatment for adult and children who experience seizures/epilepsy?  (JLA PSP Priority 7)
Overall ranking 7
JLA question ID 0110/7
Explanatory note Resective surgery (removing the part of the brain that causes seizures) can be an effective treatment for people whose seizures cannot be controlled by medication.  However, not all people with epilepsy are candidates for surgery, and the success rates vary depending on which area of the brain is affected. Surgery is not 100% effective, and some people will continue to have seizures afterwards.  More research is needed into what determines a person's chances of being seizure-free after surgery, which indviduals are most likely to benefit from surgery, and how to optimize seizure outcomes and reduce the risk of complications following surgery, such as language or memory deficits. 
Evidence

West, S., Nevitt, S. J., Cotton, J., Gandhi, S., Weston, J., Sudan, A., . . . Newton, R. (2019). Surgery for epilepsy. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews(6). doi:10.1002/14651858.CD010541.pub3 
Health Research Classification System category Neurological 
Extra information provided by this PSP
Original uncertainty examples

How likely is sz occurrence after brain surgery in childhood and sz free for 9 years? ( temporal lobe epilepsy) ~ How likely is sz occurrence after brain surgery in childhood and sz free for 9 years? ( temporal lobe epilepsy) ~ How early epilepsy surgery affects the long term outcomes in children with focal onset drug resistant epilepsy ~ How successful is surgery to remove the scar tissue in MTS?   How to determine if your type of epilepsy is drug-resistant? 
Submitted by People with Seizures x 9, Caregivers x 5, Friend or Family Member x 3, Health Care provider x 3
PSP information
PSP unique ID 0110
PSP name Epilepsy (Canada)
Total number of uncertainties identified by this PSP. 96  (To see a full list of all uncertainties identified, please see the detailed spreadsheet held on the JLA website)
Date of priority setting workshop 6th & 7th April 2021