Interictal network dysfunction and cognitive impairment in epilepsy

Abstract

Epilepsy is diagnosed when neural networks become capable of generating excessive or hypersynchronous activity patterns that result in observable seizures. In many cases, epilepsy is associated with cognitive comorbidities that persist between seizures and negatively impact quality of life. Dysregulation of the coordinated physiological network interactions that are required for cognitive function has been implicated in mediating these enduring symptoms, but the causal mechanisms are often elusive. Here, we provide an overview of neural network abnormalities with the potential to contribute to cognitive dysfunction in epilepsy. We examine these pathological interactions across spatial and temporal scales, additionally highlighting the dynamics that arise in response to the brain’s intrinsic capacity for plasticity. Understanding these processes will facilitate development of network-level interventions to address cognitive comorbidities that remain undertreated by currently available epilepsy therapeutics. Epilepsy is often associated with cognitive comorbidities that lack effective treatment options. In this Review, Gelinas and Khodagholy discuss how physiological neural networks involved in cognition are dysregulated in epilepsy and the therapeutic potential of network-level interventions.