EXPLORING TREATMENT OPTIONS
For patients like Collopy who aren’t helped by medication, surgical treatments or implanted devices that modulate brain activity (called neuromodulatory treatments) may be options. Resection surgery removes the part of the brain where the seizures begin. Another procedure, laser ablation surgery, uses a laser to destroy the part of the brain causing the seizures. Both surgeries are about 60% effective at eliminating or reducing seizures. However, because Collopy’s seizures were starting in the frontal lobe rather than the temporal lobe, surgery was less likely to be successful. Additionally, the frontal lobe controls motor functions, such as speech, so surgery could result in a loss of function, known as “unacceptable neurological deficit.” For Collopy, medication was still the best option. Dr. Van Noord tried a different medication based on the EMU results, and Collopy was seizure- free for several months. But the seizures came back—this time occurring in the evening before bedtime. During the seizures, which lasted five to 15 seconds, Collopy would be aware of what was happening but couldn’t speak. Though the seizures occurred less frequently than before, they were still highly disruptive to her life. In late 2022, Dr. Van Noord made another medication change. Collopy has not had a seizure since. “That was the game changer for me,” says Collopy, now 31. “I’m almost six months seizure-free. I’m feeling normal again and have more energy and can exercise. I finally have my life back.” SOLVING A “MEDICAL MYSTERY” Though epilepsy more commonly begins in children or older adults,
“I’m just so grateful for Dr. Van Noord and the whole team at Scripps” she says. “I cannot thank the team enough for the hours, energy and effort they put into just sticking with me and figuring it out. I don’t think I would be here without them.” For Dr. Van Noord, being able to help patients like Collopy is the most rewarding part of her work. “Ariana is one of those success stories that reminds me of why I chose to do what I do,” she says. “When I became a neurologist, I knew I was interested in epilepsy. When you can make a difference in just one person’s life, that makes all the challenges worth it.” can exercise. I finally have my life back.” —ARIANA COLLOPY “I’m almost six months seizure-free. I’m feeling normal again and have more energy and
to go home and sleep, I know there are eyes on my patient. I’m not going to come in the next morning to learn that she had three seizures and no one knew. If she has a seizure, the EEG tech calls me, and I can stay on top of what is happening. And I can adjust medication, if needed, and keep my patient safe.” After several months without a seizure, Collopy returned to work as a designer at a tile store in Solana Beach. She can walk to work, but is looking forward to having her driver’s license reinstated once she has been seizure-free for a full six months. She and Wagner are engaged to be married in May of 2024, and she plans to travel back to New York to shop for a wedding dress.
it can start at any time. Collopy says her epilepsy “came out of nowhere.” “I had no idea what was happening or why or if it would continue for the rest of my life. The uncertainty was terrible,” she says. “Dr. Van Noord said I was a medical mystery.” One of the biggest challenges of treating epilepsy is not knowing what causes it, but the more information neurologists have about the seizures, the more successful treatment is likely to be. That’s why the Scripps EMU is so valuable. “We are very fortunate that in our Scripps EMU, we have a trained EEG tech watching the patient around the clock,” says Dr. Van Noord. “I’m on call 24 hours a day, but when I do have
For more information, visit Scripps.org/ SDEpilepsy.
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