Seizure freedom
Complete absence of seizures for a specified period, typically used as the primary outcome measure in epilepsy treatment.
Full Definition
Seizure freedom refers to the complete cessation of all seizure types for a defined period, representing the optimal treatment outcome in epilepsy management. The International League Against Epilepsy defines seizure freedom as no seizures for a minimum of 12 months or three times the longest pre-intervention inter-seizure interval, whichever is longer. This outcome measure is used to evaluate treatment efficacy in medication trials, surgical interventions, and device therapies, and is considered the gold standard for successful epilepsy treatment.
Usage
Usage note: Hyphenate when used as compound adjective (seizure-free); specify time period when reporting outcomes.
In Context
- "The patient achieved seizure freedom at 6 months post-surgery and remains seizure-free at 2 years." — Surgical follow-up report
- "Seizure freedom rates for temporal lobectomy approach 70% at 5-year follow-up." — Clinical outcomes study